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(tlnitjersitp  of  iQottb  Carolina 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF 

NORTH  CAROLINA 

AT  CHAPEL  HILL 


ENDOWED  BY  THE 

DIALECTIC  AND  PHILANTHROPIC 

SOCIETIES 


G8$0 
1910 
.SU2 
v,   2 


J 


SEP  8  -  ^ 


UNIVERSITY  OF  N.C.  AT  CHAPEL  HILL 


10002069805 


This  book  is  due  at  the  LOUIS  R.  WILSON  LIBRARY  on  the 
last  date  stamped  under  "Date  Due."  If  not  on  hold  it  may  be 
renewed  by  bringing  it  to  the  library. 

DATE                    DirT 
DUE                       RET 

DATE 
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SCOTT'S  LAST  EXPEDITION 

VOLUME  II 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2013 


http://archive.org/details/scottslastexpedi2scott 


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SCOTT'S 


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LAST  EXPEDITION- 


\ 


IN  TWO  VOLUMES 

VOL.  I.   BEING    THE   JOURNALS    OF 

CAPTAIN  R.  F.  SCOTT,  R.N.,  C.V.O. 

VOL.    II.    BEING     THE    REPORTS    OF    THE    JOURNEYS    AND    THE 

SCIENTIFIC  WORK  UNDERTAKEN  BY  DR.  E.  A.  WILSON  AND 

THE   SURVIVING    MEMBERS    OF   THE   EXPEDITION 

ARRANGED    BY 

LEONARD   HUXLEY 

WITH    A    PREFACE    BY 

SIR  CLEMENTS  R.  MARKHAM,  K.C.B.,  F.R.S. 

WITH  PHOTOGRAVURE  FRONTISPIECES,  6  ORIGINAL  SKETCHES 
IN  PHOTOGRAVURE  BY  DR.  E.  A.  WILSON,  1 8  COLOURED 
PLATES  (l6  FROM  DRAWINGS  BY  DR.  WILSON),  260  FULL 
PAGE  AND  SMALLER  ILLUSTRATIONS  FROM  PHOTOGRAPHS 
TAKEN  BY  HERBERT  G.  PONTING  AND  OTHER  MEMBERS 
OF    THE     EXPEDITION,    PANORAMAS    AND    MAPS 

VOLUME   II 


*T?.u\ 


NEW  YORK 

DODD,  MEAD  AND  COMPANY 

1913 


Copyright,  191 3 
By  The  Ridgway  Company 

Copyright,  191 3 
By  Dodd,  Mead  &  Co. 

All  rights  reserved 
Published  November,  191 3 


THE    UNIVERSITY    PRESS,    CAMBRIDGE,    U.S.A. 


CONTENTS 

OF 

THE    SECOND    VOLUME 

THE  WINTER  JOURNEY  TO  CAPE  CROZIER 

Mr.  Cherry-Garrard's  Diary — Brushing  down  the  Tent — The 
Barrier  Edge — Ice  Waves  of  the  Barrier — Bowers'  Meteoro- 
logical Record — Remarkable  Aurora — Clothes  Frozen  Hard 
— Lowest  Temperature  Recorded — Between  Mt.  Terror  and 
Pressure  Ridges — Absence  of  Tide  Crack — Revised  Rations — 
Approaching  the  Knoll — Site  of  the  Hut — Building  the  Hut — 
High  Winds — Among  the  Pressure  Ridges — The  Hut  Rooted 
in — Through  Hole  and  Gully — At  the  Emperor  Rookery — 
The  Penguins'  Eggs — Night  in  the  Igloo — The  Tent  Blown 
Away — The  Stove  Fails — The  Roof  Goes — Recovery  of  the 
Tent — Unsheltered  in  the  Storm — Little  Gear  Lost — 
Personal  Sufferings — Pressures  and  Crevasses  Again — The 
Sense  of  Destiny — Past  Terror  Point — The  Barrier  'Shudder' 
— Clearer  Surface  and  Warmer  Marching — Hut  Point  Again 
— Back  at  Cape  Evans — State  of  the  Sleeping-Bags — Daily 
Routine — The  Hardest  Journey  on  Record 

NARRATIVE  OF  THE  NORTHERN  PARTY 

Instructions — King    Edward's     Land — Balloon     Bight    Gone — 
Towards   Cape  Adare — Robertson   Bay — A  Penguin   Show- 
man— Meat  Stores — Kayaks   Built — Hut  Routine — A  New 
Alarm   Clock — Sledging   Round   Robertson   Bay — A   Fierce 
Storm — Expedition  Preparing — Dangers  of  Siren  Bay — Ex- 
amining the  Coast — Sealing — Towards  Mt.  Melbourne — On 
A    the    Boomerang    Glacier — On    the    Melbourne    Glacier — To 
^     Corner    Glacier — Fossils — Evans    Coves — First    Impressions 
^    of  Blubber — Need   of   Better   Shelter — Ancient   Sea-weed — 
N     Fresh  Fish — An  Improvised  Stove — Hunger  and  Supplies — 
£  Readings  and  Lectures — Choked  by  the  Snow — The  'Corn- 
er plex'    Stove    Fails — The    Larder   Threatened — Accident   to 


Page 


vi  SCOTT'S   LAST  EXPEDITION 


Page 


Abbott — The  Igloo  Coated  with  Snow — Diet  and  Disease — 
*  Igloo  Back' — Penguin  Meat  Better  than  Seal — A  Tiring  Start 
— Illness  and  a  Gale — A  Narrow  Escape — Mount  Erebus 
in  Sight — Among  Pressure  Ridges — The  Nordenskiold  Ice 
Tongue — Seals  Found — Browning's  Condition — Renewed 
Strength  and  Health — News  at  Butter  Point — Browning's 
Recovery — Arrive  at  Cape  Evans — At  Cape  Evans  ....       54 


THE  WESTERN  JOURNEYS 
CHAPTER  I 

KOETTLITZ,    FERRAR,   AND   TAYLOR   GLACIERS 

Comrades  and  Comradeship — Instructions — Equipment — Glass- 
Roof  Ice — A  Snowless  Valley — Alcove  Camp — 'Lake  Chad' 
and  'Round  Valley' — 'A  Few  Feathers  in  the  Bed' —  Sledge 
Literature — In  Crevasses — '  Browning  the  Boots ' — The  Sound 
of  the  Sea  Ice — 'Armadillo  Camp' — 'Park  Lane  Camp' — 
Seals  on  the  Koettlitz  Glacier — Compass  Readings — An 
Eventful  Lunch — In  the  Pinnacle  Ice — At  the  Place  of 
the  Pony  Disaster — Antarctic  Changes      124 

CHAPTER  II 

THE    GEOLOGICAL    EXPEDITION    TO    GRANITE    HARBOUR 

Instructions — Improvement  in  Gear — A  March  Through  a  Snow- 
storm— Head  Gear — The  Old  Glacier  Tongue — On  Salty 
Snow — Sledge  Routine — Rendezvous  Bluff — Daily  Menu — 
'Too  Tired  to  Think' — Insects  Discovered — 'Granite  House* 
— Gondola  Mountain — Reading  in  a  Blizzard — A  Dangerous 
Passage — Skuas'  Eggs — Amateur  Doctoring — Feast  Days — 
The  'Barrier  Shudder' — Gondola  Ridge — Ascent  of  Gondola 
Nunatak — A  Photographic  Epitome — Antarctic  Gardening 
— Crossing  a  Shear  Crack — Sad  History  of  the  Skuas — Rec- 
reations— Gran's  Birthday — The  Ship  Disappears — A  Com- 
pulsory March — A  Saving  Depot  Left — Perilous  Marching 
— Eye  Treatment — At  Butter  Point — Met  by  the  Ship     .    .      152 

SPRING  DEPOT  JOURNEY 

The  New  Double  Tent — The  Cairn  Buried  in  Snow — Marching 

Average 199 


CONTENTS  OF  THE   SECOND  VOLUME         vii 


THE  LAST  YEAR  AT  CAPE  EVANS 

CHAPTER  I  Page 

Lieutenant  Evans  Saved — Setting  out  to  meet  Scott— The  Dog 

Team  Held  Up — Hardships  on  the  Return 204 

CHAPTER  II 

A  Last  Effort  in  Great  Cold — Council  at  Cape  Evans — Attempt 
to  Relieve  Campbell — A  Difficult  Return — The  Second  Winter 
at  Cape  Evans — Winter  Occupations  Renewed 210 

CHAPTER  III 

New  Mule  Gear — Fish,  Fire,  and  Fossils — Mules  Enjoy  Blizzards 

— Alternative  Before  the  Search  Party — Plans  for  the  Search     219 

CHAPTER   IV 

Loss  of  the  Best  Dog — A  Fire:  The  Mules'  Condition — Demetri 

Depot 227 

CHAPTER  V 

The  Mules  Set  Out— The  Dogs'  Cure  for  Slackness— The  Ways 
of  Dogs  and  Mules — Leakage  of  Oil — The  Last  Cairn — Re- 
turn of  Campbell 232 

THE  ASCENT  OF   EREBUS,   DECEMBER,   1912 

Demetri's  Peak.  — The  Sledge  Return — The  Active  Crater  Shows 

Off — A  Glissade  Down 240 

VOYAGES  OF  THE   TERRA  NOVA 

Oates  Land — The  Last  of  the  Land — Lesser  Rorquals — Difficulty 
with  the  Pumps — The  Winter  Cruise — Lyttelton  Hospitality 
— Programme  for  the  Second  Voyage — Mules  Exercised  on 
Deck — Campbell's  Party  Transferred — Off  Cape  Evans — 
Taylor's  Party  Picked  Up — First  Attempt  to  Relieve  Camp- 
bell— Second  Attempt  to  Relieve  Campbell — The  Worst 
Storm  of  All — Death  of  Brissenden — Position  of  the  Pack — 
Penguins — Tidings  of  the  Southern  Party — Reception  at  the 
Hut — The  Memorial  Cross — A  Visit  to  Campbell's  Igloo — 
New  Zealand  Reached — The  Nimrod  Islands — Tribute  to 
the  Crew 246 

UNIVERSITAS  ANTARCTICA! 

The  Barrier's  Floating  Ice-Front — Movement  of  the  Barrier — 
The  Glaciers  and  the  Ice  Sheet — Debate  on  the  Barrier 
Problems 279 


viii  SCOTT'S  LAST  EXPEDITION 


A  RESUME   OF  THE  PHYSIOGRAPHY  AND  GLACIAL 
GEOLOGY  OF  VICTORIA  LAND,  ANTARCTICA 

Page 
An  Australian  Parallel — Plateau  and  Mountains — The  Ferrar  and 
Taylor  Glaciers — The  Koettlitz  Glacier — The  Great  Piedmont 
Glacier — The  Retreating  Ice 285 

THE  GEOLOGICAL  HISTORY  OF  SOUTH  VICTORIA  LAND 

The  Oldest  Rocks — Cambrian  Strata — The  Beacon  Sandstone — 

The  Great  Faults 295 

SUMMARY  OF  GEOLOGICAL  JOURNEYS 
The  Fossils  Collected 301 

NOTES   ON  ICE   PHYSICS 
Sea  Ice — Pack  Ice — Glaciers — The  Barrier — Icebergs 303 

GENERAL  PHYSICS 

Magnetic  Observations — Atmospheric  Electricity — Pendulum  Ob- 
servations      311 

METEOROLOGICAL  REPORT 

Temperatures — Blizzards — Frequency    of   High    Winds — Record 

of  Blizzards — Causes  of  Blizzards — Potential  Gradient  Tables     316 

SUMMARY  OF  BIOLOGICAL  WORK  CARRIED  OUT  ON  BOARD 
THE    TERRA  NOVA,   1910-1913 

The  Plankton — New  Zealand  Studies — The  Ocean  Food-Supply 

— Cephalodiscus 328 

MARINE  BIOLOGY— WINTER  QUARTERS,   1911-1913 
Tides  in  McMurdo  Sound 335 

OUTFIT  AND   PREPARATION 

Firms  Supplying  Stores — Warm  Interest  in  the  Expedition — The 

Terra  Nova 338 

Epilogue 345 

Appendix 347 

Index 353 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

IN 

THE  SECOND  VOLUME 


Portrait  of  Edward  A.  Wilson,  B.A.,  M.B Frontispiece 

COLOURED  PLATES 

From  Water-colour  Drawings  by  Dr.  Edward  A.  Wilson 

Facing  p.    24 

37 

42 

106 

227 
232 
238 


Cave  in  the  Barrier,  Cape  Crozier,  January  4,  191 1     . 

Mount  Erebus 

Hut  Point  from  Observation  Hill 

Sledging 

Looking  West  from  Cape  Evans 

The  Ramp  and  the  Slopes  of  Erebus      

An  April  Sunset  from  Hut  Point,  looking  West    .    .    . 

From  an  Autochrome  Photograph  by  Herbert  G.  Ponting 
An  April  After-glow " 


268 


DOUBLE  PAGE  PLATES 


Panorama  from  Discovery  Bluff,  looking  north-^ 
west  up  the  Mackay  Glacier  to  the  Great  Ice 

Plateau  

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
The  top  of  Mount  Suess,  looking  South  .... 
(Photo  by  Lieut.  T.  Gran) 

A  Panorama  of  Cape  Roberts " 

(Photo  by  G.  Taylor) 
Avalanche  Cliffs  on  the  South  Side  of  Granite 

Harbour 

(Photo  by  G.  Taylor) 


Between  pp.  176-177 


180-181 


SCOTT'S  LAST  EXPEDITION 


An   *  Outlet   Glacier'   Valley    Completely   filled' 

with  Ice 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
An  Ice-free  Outlet  Valley  whose  Glacier  has  Re- 
ceded over  Twenty  Miles  from  the  Sea   .    .    . 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
The  Lower  Koettlitz  Glacier 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 


'  Between  pp.  286-287 


FULL  PAGE  PLATES 

The  Full  Page  Plates  are  from  Photographs  by  Herbert  G.  Ponting,  except 

where  otherwise  stated 

Bowers,  Wilson  and  Cherry-Garrard  about  to  Leave  for 

Cape  Crozier Facing  p.      2 

The  Tide-crack  at  Razorback  Island      "               6 

A  Weddell  Seal  getting  on  to  the  Ice 6 

A  Pressure  Ridge  in  the  Sea  Ice  running  towards  Cape  Barne    "  10 

Emperor  Penguins      "             31 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 

Emperor  Penguins'  Eggs  from  Cape  Crozier 34 

Frost-Smoke "             34 

Wilson,  Bowers  and  Cherry-Garrard  on  Their  Return 

from  Cape  Crozier "            46 

The  Last  Boat  leaves  for  the  Ship 53 

A  Berg  calving  from  a  Glacier  at  Cape  Crozier    ....  56 


{The  Illustrations  facing  pages  59  to  108,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  those  facing  pages  90  and  92,  are  from 
Photographs  by  Dr.  Levick) 

Face  of  a  Glacier  in  Victoria  Land 59 

Dugdale  Glacier 59 

Penguins  Promenade 61 

Skua  Gulls  Fighting  over  some  Blubber 64 

Penguins  Jumping  on  to  the  Ice-foot 64 

Launch  of  the  Pram 66 

Campbell  and  Priestley  afloat  on  Pancake  Ice      ....  66 

Campbell  Afloat  in  a  Kayak "  68 

The  Two  Kayaks  Ashore      68 

Llansen's  Grave  on  Cape  Adare 70 

Clearing  Drift  from  Window  of  Hut  at  Cape  Adare    .    .  70 

'The  Warning.'     An  Oncoming  Blizzard 72 

Slope  of  the  Warning  Glacier 72 


ILLUSTRATIONS   IN   SECOND  VOLUME  xi 

Camp  in  the  Cave  under  Penelope  Point Facing  p.    74 

Levick  outside  Camp  at  Penelope  Point 74 

The  Hut  at  Cape  Adare "            76 

The  Northern  Party  at  Cape  Adare 76 

Ice  Structure 78 

Re-cemented  Crevasse 78 

Crevassed  Ice  at  Entrance  to  Priestley  Glacier    ....  81 

Inside  Door  of  Igloo  by  Light  of  Blubber  Lamps     .    .    .  84 

Levick's  Camp  among  Crevasses 84 

Penguins  on  Ice-foot      87 

This  Penguin  has  an  Industrious  Mate      90 

This  one  hasn't 90 

A  Pair  of  Adelie  Penguins 92 

A  Proud  Mother "             92 

Browning  at  the  Igloo  Door 94 

Exterior  of  Igloo 94 

Igloo  Passage,  looking  towards  the  Steps  leading  outside, 

down  which  the  Light  is  Shining 97 

Ice  Cave 104 

Group  after  Winter  in  Igloo 104 

Penguins  Diving "           108 

A  Weddell  Seal  about  to  Dive "           112 

A  Weddell  Seal  on  the  Beach "           112 

Lieut.  Campbell's  Party  on  their  Return  to  Cape  Evans  "           121 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 

Telephotograph  of  the  Mount  Lister  Scarp "           124 

The  First  Western  Party  in  a  Natural  Ice-tunnel    ...  "           126 

(Photo  by  G.  Taylor) 

The  Second  Western  Party  at  Cape  Geology "           126 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 

Alcove  Camp  in  a  Surface  Gully  of  the  Taylor  Glacier  .    .  "           132 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 

'Packing'  from  Alcove  Camp  to  the  Sea "           132 

(Photo  by  G.  Taylor) 

The  Lower  Koettlitz  Glacier "           137 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 

The  Koettlitz  Glacier  just  North  of  Heald  Island    ...  "           142 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 

Alph  Avenue "           142 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 

Ice  Crystals  on  the  Roof  of  a  Cave "           144 

(Photo  by  C.  S.  Wright) 

A  Steep  Gully  cut  by  the  Alph  River "           144 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 

The  South-west  End  of  Alph  Avenue "           146 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 


xii  SCOTT'S  LAST  EXPEDITION 

The  Second  Western  Party  the  Day  they  were  picked  up 

by  the  Ship      Facing  p.  150 

Sledge  Track  crossing  an  Adelie  Penguin  Track  ....  154 

A  Moulting  Penguin      ......  154 

The  Wilson  Piedmont  Glacier      "  158 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
Couloir  Cliffs,  Granite  Harbour 158 

(Photo  by  G.  Taylor) 
'Overland  over  Cape  Roberts' 162 

(Photo  by  G.  Taylor) 
Heavy  Sledging  in  the  New  Snow  off  Cape  Disappoint- 
ment   162 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
Granite  Hut,  Cape  Geology 166 

(Photo  by  G.  Taylor) 
Forde  Cooking  Seal-fry  on  the  Blubber  Stove  at  Cape 

Roberts "  166 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
Pressure  Ice  Blocks  near  Discovery  Bluff 170 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
The  Devil's  Punch  Bowl "  170 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
Granite   Blocks   Planed   by  Ancient  Glaciers   at   Cape 

Roberts "  184 

(Photo  by  G.  Taylor) 
Mount  England  and  the  New  Glacier "  184 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
The  Mouth  of  Dry  Valley "  194 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
The  Relief  of  the  Western  Party     .    . 196 

The  Shadow  of  Mount  Erebus  on  the  Clouds 200 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
Lieut.  E.  R.  G.  R.  Evans  Surveying  with  the  Four-inch 

Theodolite  which  was  used  to  locate  the  South  Pole  .  202 

Mount  Erebus     . 210 

Demetri  Geroff   .    .    . 216 

(Photo  by  Lieut.  T.  Gran) 
Gran  with  Mule  ' Lai  Khan' "  216 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
Midwinter  Day,  191 2 — The  Officers "  224 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
Midwinter  Day,  191 2 — The  Men 224 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
The  Hut  after  the  Winter "  230 

Southern  Party,  1912 234 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
The   Last   Rest.      (The   Grave   of   Scott,    Wilson,    and 

Bowers) "  236 

(Photo  by  Lieut.  T.  Gran) 


ILLUSTRATIONS   IN   SECOND  VOLUME         xiii 


The  Ramparts  of  Mount  Erebus 

Remains  of  an  Explosive  Crater  on  Erebus 

(Photo  by  R.  E.  Priestley) 

Erebus  Party,  December,  191 2 

(Photo  by  R.  E.  Priestley) 

Highest  Camp  in  Antarctica 

(Photo  by  R.  E.  Priestley) 

South  Fang,  Old  Crater 

(Photo  by  R.  E.  Priestley) 

The  Summit  of  Erebus      

«     (Photo  by  Lieut.  T.  Gran) 

Lieut.  Pennell  with  a  Prismatic  Compass       

Lieut.  Bruce 

The  Officers  of  the  'Terra  Nova/  191 2  Voyage  .... 
Heavy  Pack  in  which  the  Ship  was  held  up  whilst  endeav- 
ouring to  Rescue  the  Northern  Party 

Memorial  Cross  Erected  at  Observation  Hill  to  the  South- 
ern Party 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
Vertical  Sections  showing  foundered  and  fractured  east- 
slopes  of  Victoria  Land  and  Australia 

Main  Physiographic  Features  of  the  Apposed  Valleys 

of  the  Ferrar  and  Taylor  Glaciers 

Main  Physiographic  Features  of  the  Koettlitz  Glacier.    . 
Main  Physiographic  Features  of  the  Mackay  Glacier  and 
Granite  Harbour t 

Ice-flowers  on  Newly-formed  Sea  Ice 

(Photo  by  C.  S.  Wright) 
Growing  Ice-foot,  Cape  Evans 

(Photo  by  F.  Debenham) 
Ice  Crystals  in  Crevasse 

(Photo  by  C.  S.  Wright) 

C.  S.  Wright  making  Observations  with  the  Transit   .    . 

Dr.  Simpson  in  his  Laboratory 

A  Blizzard 

(Photo  by  Dr.  Simpson) 
A  Blizzard  with  Gusts 

(Photo  by  Dr.  Simpson) 
Sudden  Commencement  of  Blizzards      

(Photo  by  Dr.  Simpson) 

D.  G.  Lillie  with  Some  of  the  Siliceous  Sponges  of  which 
he  Secured  a  Record  Haul  with  the  Dredge      .... 

F.  Debenham      

E.  W.  Nelson  with  the  Nansen-Petersen  Insulated  Water- 
bottle    


acini 

r  p.  24O 
242 

a 

242 

a 

246 

a 

246 

it 

248 

it 
a 
a 

256 
256 
260 

266 


Page 

From 

285 

drawings 

by 

288 

Edward 

289 

Pay 

291 

Facing  p 

•  304 

ct 

307 

te 

310 

a 

312 

a 

317 

a 

322 

a 

324 

a 

326 

u 

329 

a 

332 

335 


xiv  SCOTT'S  LAST  EXPEDITION 


MAPS 

Track  of  Journey  from  Cape  Evans  to  Cape  Crozier  .    .  Facing  p.    50 
Sketch  Map  to  Illustrate  Journeys  of  the  Western  Geo- 
logical Parties "           Igo 

Map  of  the  Region  traversed  on  the  Western  Journeys, 

1911-1912 "     IQg 

Sketch  Map  of  Mount  Erebus "           244 

Tracks  of  the  '  Terra  Nova,'  January-March,  191 2      .    .  "           274 

Tracks  of  the  'Terra  Nova/  1910-1913      "           278 

Preliminary  Map  showing  Sphere  of  Action  of  British 

Antarctic  Expedition,  1910-191 3 At  end  of  text 


THE    BARRIER    SILENCE 

The  Silence  was  deep  with  a  breath  like  sleep 

As  our  sledge  runners  slid  on  the  snow, 
But  the  fate-full  fall  of  our  fur-clad  feet 

Struck  mute  like  a  silent  blow 
On  a  questioning  "  Hush  ? "  as  the  settling  crust 

Shrank  shivering  over  the  floe. 
And  a  voice  that  was  thick  from  a  soul  that  seemed  sick 

Came  back  from  the  Barrier  ;  —  '  Go  1 
For  the  secrets  hidden  are  all  forbidden 

Till  God  means  man  to  know.' 
And  this  was  the  thought  that  the  silence  wrought, 

As  it  scorched  and  froze  us  through, 
That  we  were  the  men  God  meant  should  know 

The  heart  of  the  Barrier  snow, 
By  the  heat  of  the  sun,  and  the  glow 

And  the  glare  from  the  glistening  floe, 
As  it  scorched  and  froze  us  through  and  through 

With  the  bite  of  the  drifting  snow. 

These  verses  were  written  by  Dr.  Wilson  for  the  South  Polar  Times.  It  was  char- 
acteristic of  the  man  that  he  sent  them  in  typewritten,  lest  the  editor  should  recognise  his 
hand  and  judge  them  on  personal  rather  than  literary  grounds.  Many  of  their  readers 
confess  that  they  felt  in  these  lines  Wilson's  own  premonition  of  the  event. 


SCOTT'S   LAST   EXPEDITION 

THE    WINTER    JOURNEY 

June  27,  191 1,  to  August  i,  191  i 

The  object  of  this  expedition  to  the  Emperor  penguin  rookery  in 
the  darkness  and  cold  of  an  Antarctic  winter  was  set  forth  years 
before  in  Dr.  Wilson's  Report  of  the  Zoology  of  the  Discovery 
Voyage.  It  was  to  secure  eggs  at  such  a  stage  as  could  furnish  a 
series  of  early  embryos  by  which  alone  the  particular  points  of 
interest  in  the  development  of  the  bird  could  be  worked  out;  for 
it  seemed  probable  '  that  we  have  in  the  Emperor  penguin  the 
nearest  approach  to  a  primitive  form  not  only  of  a  penguin,  but 
of  a  bird.'  These  points  could  not  be  investigated  in  the  deserted 
eggs  and  chicks  which  had  been  obtained  in  Discovery  days.  Such 
a  journey  '  entailed  the  risks  of  sledge  travelling  in  midwinter 
with  an  almost  total  absence  of  light,'  for  the  Emperor  is  singular 
in  nesting  at  the  coldest  season  of  the  year,  and  '  the  party  would 
have  to  be  on  the  scene  at  any  rate  early  in  July.  ...  It  would  at 
any  time  require  that  a  party  of  three  at  least,  with  full  camp 
equipment,  should  traverse  about  a  hundred  miles  of  the  Barrier 
surface  and  should,  by  moonlight,  cross  over  with  rope  and  axe 
the  immense  pressure  ridges  which  form  a  chaos  of  crevasses  at 
Cape  Crozier  .  .  .  which  have  taken  a  party  as  much  as  two 
hours  of  careful  work  to  cross  by  daylight.' 

Furthermore,  it  afforded  an  opportunity  of  obtaining  an 
exact  knowledge  of  the  winter  conditions  on  the  Barrier  at  its 
western  end,  and  throughout  its  dangers  and  difficulties  Bowers 
kept  a  most  remarkable  meteorological  record  (given  at  the  end 
of  this  volume)  the  substance  of  which  is  embodied  in  this  report. 
The  three  travellers  also  experimented  with  their  sledging  rations, 
each  for  some  time  taking  a  different  proportion  of  pemmican  and 
biscuit,  the  results  of  which  were  used  in  order  to  make  up  the 
rations  for  future  use. 

VOL.   II — I 


2  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [June 

The  journey  was  planned  to  last  six  weeks,  with  a  stay  of  sev- 
eral days  near  the  rookery,  but  was  shortened  by  the  extreme  cold 
and  consequent  consumption  of  their  store  of  fuel,  and  the  tem- 
pest which  drove  the  party  back  from  Cape  Crozier. 

To  the  report  written  by  Dr.  Wilson  various  notes  and  details 
are  added  in  square  brackets  from  Mr.  Cherry-Garrard's  diary. 
This  diary,  be  it  said,  was  never  written  for  publication.  It  was 
a  private  record,  for  private  remembrance.  It  tells  of  incidents 
and  impressions  in  their  personal  bearing,  and  so  telling,  inciden- 
tally preserves  the  fuller  human  colouring  that  has  been  sedu- 
lously stripped  away  from  Dr.  Wilson's  objective  record,  written 
with  a  more  strictly  scientific  outlook. 

Such  notes  have  a  manifold  value.  Every  personality  receives 
its  own  impression  of  the  same  incidents,  recalls  a  different  aspect, 
throws  sidelights  from  a  different  angle.  The  young  traveller 
records  for  himself  a  fresh  and  vivid  personal  impression,  un- 
diminished by  reshaping  into  the  perhaps  necessary  reticence  of 
an  official  report.  Not  least,  also,  he  gives  us  details  about  his 
chief  which  Dr.  Wilson  could  not  or  would  not  have  set  down. 

His  own  share  in  the  expedition  is  the  more  remarkable  be- 
cause, short-sighted  as  he  was,  he  could  not  wear  his  spectacles 
under  such  conditions. 

With  the  help  of  these  notes,  the  reader  can  fill  in  somewhat 
of  those  lights  and  shades  which  the  official  report,  addressed  to 
a  Polar  explorer,  needed  not  to  add.  Now  that  the  other  two 
comrades  in  the  adventure  are  no  more,  Mr.  Cherry-.Garrard  has 
been  prevailed  upon  to  let  his  diary  be  used  as  it  is  used  here. 
Let  him  be  assured  that  his  chief  fear  is  groundless — the  fear  that 
in  allowing  such  very  personal  jottings  to  be  quoted,  he  should  be 
imagined  to  magnify  his  own  share  in  the  expedition,  instead  of 
insisting,  as  he  would  have  insisted  in  a  public  report,  on  the  won- 
derful work  of  his  friends,  the  strength,  the  steadfastness,  and  the 
serenity  with  which  they  carried  it  through.  There  was  never  an 
angry  word  from  beginning  to  end,  even  in  the  most  trying  times. 
These  unpremeditated  notes  help  to  make  Wilson  and  Bowers 
stand  out  in  their  true  colours. 

Tuesday,  June  27,  191 1. — Leaving  the  hut  at  Cape  Evans 
shortly  before  1 1  A.M.,  Bowers,  Cherry-Garrard  and  I  started 
for  our  first  march  accompanied  by  Simpson,  Meares,  Griffith 
Taylor,  Nelson  and  Gran,  who  all  helped  us  to  drag  our  two 


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i9ii]  BRUSHING    DOVv7N    THE    TENT  3 

sledges,  and  by  a  number  of  others  who  came  to  see  us  round 
the  Cape. 

We  made  for  the  western  extremity  of  Big  Razorback  Island, 
and  halted  when  it  had  just  closed  and  covered  the  Little  Razor- 
back.  We  were  then  not  100  yards  from  the  actual  end  of  the 
rock  and  the  sledgemeter  read  3  miles  700  yards.  Nelson  and 
Taylor  left  us  here  and  we  continued  with  the  other  three. 

We  could  now  just  distinguish  the  rock  patches  of  Castle  Rock 
and  Harbour  Heights  and  we  made  in  a  bit  to  pass  as  close  as 
possible  to  the  end  of  Glacier  Tongue,  where  pressure  lines  were 
said  to  be  less  numerous  in  the  sea  ice  than  farther  out.  It  was 
so  dark,  however,  that  we  never  saw  the  end  of  this  Glacier 
Tongue,  and  we  only  knew  we  had  passed  it  when  the  lower  two- 
thirds  of  the  Turk's  Head  Cliffs  were  suddenly  cut  off. 

We  then  ran  into  some  very  difficult  hummocky  sea  ice  with 
steep-cut  drifts,  and  our  rear  sledge  capsized.  It  was  too  dark  to 
avoid  them,  so  Meares,  Simpson  and  Gran  remained  with  us  and 
helped  us  until  we  had  cleared  them.  We  were  then  about  three- 
quarters  of  a  mile  beyond  Glacier  Tongue  and  the  sledgemeter 
read  5  m.  250  yds. 

The  wind,  light  southerly  airs,  alternating  with  calm  all  the 
forenoon,  now  began  to  blow  with  some  force  from  the  east,  and 
the  sky  became  more  and  more  overcast  in  the  south  [a  half  bliz- 
zard, in  fact]  ;  so  we  persuaded  the  three  helpers  to  return  from 
here.  After  this  we  had  very  little  trouble  with  rough  ice,  and 
though  the  loads  (about  250  lbs.  each)  were  heavy  enough  to 
make  us  slow,  we  had  a  good  surface  to  go  on. 

We  camped  for  lunch  at  2.30  P.M.,  having  made  six  and  one- 
third  miles  from  Cape  Evans.  The  double  tent  was  easy  to  pitch, 
and  we  began  a  routine  of  brushing  down  the  inside,  after  remov- 
ing all  the  contents,  every  time  we  broke  camp.  This  routine  we 
continued  the  whole  way  to  Cape  Crozier,  and  it  made  a  great 
difference  to  the  collection  of  ice  on  the  upper  two-thirds  of  the 
tent.  It  was  the  duty  of  the  cook  for  the  day  to  see  to  this,  and 
we  were  each  of  us  cook  for  one  day  in  turn.  The  lower  third  of 
the  tent  skirt  lining  gradually  got  more  and  more  iced  up  by 
trickles  from  above  during  the  running  of  the  primus,  and  nothing 
short  of  melting  it  out  would  have  enabled  us  to  keep  it  clear  of 
ice.  We  gave  up  the  brushing  down  routine  on  the  journey  home 
from  Cape  Crozier,  for  we  had  to  burn  oil  so  sparingly  that  we 


4  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [June 

tied  up  the  ventilator  permanently  and  kept  in  all  the  steam  and 
heat  we  could,  to  thaw  out  our  finnesko,  which  we  hung  in  the 
roof  at  night.  We  were  so  iced  up  as  to  our  clothes  and  sleeping- 
bags  that  nothing  outside  made  any  difference,  and  the  omission 
of  brushing  down  saved  time  in  getting  off. 

After  lunch  we  got  away  at  4  p.m.  and  made  for  what  we 
believed  to  be  Hut  Point,  but  in  the  dark  we  got  a  good  deal  too 
close  in  towards  Castle  Rock,  much  more  than  was  necessary. 
Our  pace  was  slow  owing  to  the  weights,  but  the  surface  was  not 
bad.  It  was  chiefly  crusty  rough  sea  ice,  salt  to  the  taste  still; 
or  it  had  an  inch  or  two  of  white  crusty  snow  on  the  rough,  darker 
sea  ice,  alternating  with  broader  drifts  of  hard  wind-swept  snow, 
making  long,  low  mounds  over  which  the  sledges  ran  easily. 
These  seemed  here  to  result  from  an  E.N.E.  wind  coming  from 
the  neck  on  the  promontory,  the  wind  which  we  caught  just  after 
passing  the  Glacier  Tongue,  and  again  off  the  ridge  along  Castle 
Rock,  where  it  blew  to  force  5,  up  to  8  p.m.,  when  we  camped  for 
the  night,  having  made  9J4  miles  from  Cape  Evans.  [Setting 
this  tent  in  dark  is  difficult,  but  not  too  bad  even  in  that  wind. 
Bill  warns  me  seriously  against  running  risk  of  frostbite.  I  find 
no  specs,  very  hard  in  setting  tent — must  be  sure  not  to  let  any 
inability  arising  from  this  get  on  my  nerves — 41  more  days  we 
hope.]  Castle  Rock  was  here  nearly  abeam.  The  wind  dropped 
soon  after  and  we  had  a  clear  starlit  night. 

The  temperature  for  the  day  ranged  from  -  14-5°  to  -  15 °, 
and  the  minimum  temperature  for  the  night  was  -  260. 

Wednesday,  June  28,  191 1. — Turned  out  at  7.30  A.M.  The 
going  became  very  heavy  with  the  two  sledges,  and  we  made  very 
little  more  than  a  mile  an  hour  over  a  surface  which  was  all  rough, 
rubbly  salt  sea  ice  with  no  snow  on  it.  Bowers  thinks  that  we 
were  on  definitely  younger  ice  than  that  which  we  were  on  farther 
out  yesterday  and  on  our  return.  He  thinks  there  was  a  large 
open  lead  along  the  shore  which  was  the  last  to  freeze  up,  and 
that  this  resulted  from  off-shore  winds. 

We  reached  Hut  Point  at  1.30  p.m.,  having  crossed  three  or 
four  cracks  and  lines  of  pressure  chiefly  radiating  from  Hut  Point 
itself.  The  sledgemeter  showed  13  m.  1500  yds.,  but  we  had  not 
come  in  a  direct  line  from  Cape  Evans.  We  lunched  in  the  hut 
and  had  no  difficulty  with  the  door,  as  there  was  hardly  any  snow- 
drift against  it. 


i9ii]  THE    BARRIER    EDGE  5 

After  lunch  we  made  better  going  to  Cape  Armitage,  though 
there  was  still  no  snow  here  on  the  rough,  rubbly  ice,  but  it  was 
not  so  bad  as  what  we  had  been  on  during  the  forenoon,  where 
the  sea  ice  was  still  salt  and  crunchy,  with  humps  everywhere, 
formed  from  the  old  weathered  ice  and  salt  (lowers,  none  bigger 
than  one's  fist,  allowing  the  feet  to  crush  between  them  every  step 
at  a  different  angle.  After  Cape  Armitage  the  surface  became 
hard  and  snow  covered;  and  with  the  best  going  we  met  with  the 
whole  journey  for  a  short  two  miles,  we  quickly  reached  the  edge 
of  the  Barrier,  finding  a  good  slope  of  snowdrift  where  we  struck 
it,  and  having  no  difficulty  in  drawing  our  sledges  up  one  at  a 
time.  There  was  a  snow-covered  crack  as  usual  at  the  top  of  the 
drift,  not  a  working  crack,  and  invisible  until  broken  into. 

Unfortunately,  both  in  going  out  and  in  coming  back,  we 
reached  the  Barrier  edge  in  too  bad  a  light  to  see  whether  these 
snowdrifts  were  quite  continuous  all  along  the  edge,  but  from  the 
fact  that  they  were  so  at  the  two  different  points  at  which  we 
struck  the  edge  in  the  dark,  I  think  it  is  probable  that  the  slope 
is  now  continuous  pretty  well  everywhere.  We  rose  about  1 2  ft. 
off  the  sea  ice. 

Coming  down  the  snow  slope  off  the  Barrier  was  a  stream  of 
very  cold  air  which  we  felt  first  when  we  were  only  a  few  yards 
from  the  foot,  and  lost  very  soon  after  reaching  the  top.  [Got 
both  hands  bitten  going  up  Barrier — all  ten  fingers.] 

It  was  now  6.30  p.m.,  and  we  camped  at  7,  the  last  half  hour 
on  the  Barrier  surface  being  uphill,  and  very  heavy  compared 
with  the  easy  going  on  the  snow-covered  sea  ice  from  Cape  Ar- 
mitage. There  was  no  doubt  as  to  the  existence  of  this  slope  up; 
we  confirmed  it  on  our  return,  and  I  take  it  to  be  a  proof  that  the 
Barrier  at  this  point  has  in  recent  years  broken  back  at  any  rate 
half  a  mile  or  a  mile  farther  than  it  did  this  year — for  the  pre- 
vious broken  edges  can  be  supposed  to  fill  up  successively  in  this 
way  and  so  to  produce  a  gradient  without  steps. 

We  had  nothing  but  light  variable  airs  all  day  with  a  clear 
sky.  The  temp,  ranged  from  —24-5°  in  the  morning  by  Castle 
Rock  to  -26-5°  at  Hut  Point  and  -470  at  the  edge  of  the 
Barrier. 

Thursday,  June  29,  191 1. — We  spent  a  cold  night  with  temp, 
down  to  -  56-5°  [Frightful  cold  last  night — bad  night.  Bill  has 
hardly  slept  for  two  nights — clothes  beginning  to  get  bad],  and 


6  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [June 

it  was  -  490  when  we  turned  out  at  9  A.M. ;  but  the  day  was  fine 
and  calm  on  the  whole,  with  occasional  light  easterly  airs  only. 

Curtains  of  aurora  covered  a  great  part  of  the  sky  to  the 
east  both  morning  and  evening,  and  it  was  one  of  the  chief  pleas- 
ures of  our  journey  out  that  we  were  facing*east,  where  almost  all 
the  aurora  occurred,  and  so  we  could  watch  its  changes  as  we 
marched,  almost  the  whole  time.  Nine-tenths  of  the  aurora  we 
saw  was  in  the  east  and  S.E.  of  the  sky,  often  well  up  to  the 
zenith,  but  always  starting  from  below  the  Barrier  horizon.  We 
never  saw  any  that  appeared  close  at  hand. 

The  temp,  remained  at  -  500  all  day,  and  Cherry  and  I  both 
felt  the  cold  of  the  snow  very  much  in  our  feet  on  the  march,  he 
getting  his  big  toes  blistered  by  frostbite,  and  I  my  heel  and  the 
sole  of  my  foot.  A  good  many  of  Cherry's  finger-tips  also  went 
last  night  at  the  edge  of  the  Barrier  and  are  bulbous  to-day;  but 
he  takes  them  as  a  matter  of  course  and  says  nothing,  and  he 
never  once  allowed  them  to  interfere  with  his  usefulness. 

The  surface  to-day  was  firm,  generally;  hard  and  windswept 
in  some  places,  and  soft  and  sandy  in  others.  The  sledges  to-day 
went  heaviest  on  the  harder  areas  for  some  reason,  which  was 
quite  exceptional.  I  think  there  was  a  fixed  deposit  of  gritty  crys- 
tals on  the  apparently  smooth  surface.  Always  after  this  it  was 
the  soft  sandy  drifts  which  held  us  up  more  than  anything  else. 

We  made  two  or  three  long  sloping  gradients  to-day  in  our 
march  going  eastward.  These  also  we  confirmed  on  our  return 
journey,  when  we  recrossed  three  long  low  waves  on  about  the 
same  line,  and  I  believe  them  to  be  the  continuation  of  a  series 
of  extensive  waves  which  run  out  from  the  point  at  which  the 
glacier  flow  from  Mt.  Terra  Nova  runs  into  the  Barrier.  These 
waves  curve  gradually  south-westward  from  the  south-easterly 
direction  in  which  they  first  join  the  Barrier.  Hodgson  and  I  fol- 
lowed up  and  roughly  chartered  one  of  this  group  of  waves  in  our 
journey  in  1903  when  we  were  examining  the  tide  crack  along  the 
south  side  of  Ross  Island.  They  are  very  long  and  definite  dis- 
turbances, and  in  our  march  were  taken  so  diagonally  that  they 
seemed  much  longer.  The  difference  of  surface  was  quite  notice- 
able, harder  on  the  ridge  summits  and  softer  in  the  hollows.  We 
have  never  met  with  anything  like  a  crevasse  on  them. 

Friday,  June  30,  191 1. — The  surface  to-day  proved  too  heavy 
for  us — we  were  unable  to  drag  both  sledges  together,  so  we  re- 


, 


THE    TIDE-CRACK    AT    RAZORBACK    ISLAND 


A    WEDDELL    SEAL    GETTING    ON    TO    THE    ICE 


19"]  BOWERS'    RECORD  7 

layed  one  at  a  time,  by  daylight  from  1 1  A.M.  to  3  p.m. — and  by 
candle-lamp  from  4.30  p.m.  to  7.45  p.m.  We  made  only  3J4 
miles  in  the  day.  The  surface  was  soft  and  sandy,  and  though 
always  crusted,  always  let  one  through  an  inch  or  two,  as  well  as 
the  sledge  runners. 

Heavy  subsidences  were  continual  all  day,  and  the  surface 
seemed  to  give  way  more  when  we  were  on  the  edges  of  the  softer 
sandy  patches.  They  were  not  extensive  as  a  rule  as  far  as  one 
could  judge,  but  they  were  exceptionally  frequent — much  more 
so  than  I  have  known  them  in  the  summer.  There  was  no  reason 
to  think  they  dropped  more  than  y^  to  Yz  inch.  The  temp,  to-day 
ranged  from  -  SS°  m  the  morning  to  -  61 -6°  at  lunch  and  -  66° 
on  camping  for  the  night.  We  had  calm  weather  all  day,  and 
some  aurora  to  watch  in  the  E.  and  from  N.E.  to  S.  during  the 
march. 

[June  30. — Relaying  all  day — surface  awful.  It  does  not  look 
as  if  we  could  pull  this  off.  Last  night  was  record  sledging  tem- 
perature —  750  on  sledge,  —  690  under  sledge.*  I  was  in  big  bag 
and  most  of  night  shivered  till  back  seemed  to  break,  then  warm 
for  half  minute  and  then  on  again  the  same  thing :  turned  right 
over,  froze  in  and  got  a  little  sleep.  Feet  liable  to  go.  One 
big  toe  went  and  I  don't  know  for  how  long.] 

Saturday,  July  1,  191 1. — -We  turned  out  at  7.30  A.M.  No 
dawn  was  visible,  but  at  10.45  A.M.,  when  we  got  away,  we  were 
able  to  relay  by  daylight,  and  continued  so  until  3  P.M.  After 
lunch  we  relayed  by  candle  lamp  from  4.15  P.M.  to  7.45  P.M. 
The  surface  was  like  sand,  and  so  heavy  that  we  could  only  slowly 
move  one  sledge  along.  Subsidences  very  frequent  all  day.  We 
made  only  2*4  miles  in  all.  [Bill  and  Birdie  very  unselfish  and 
helpful — impossible  to  wear  glasses  and  so  I  am  handicapped.] 

Between  5  p.m.  and  7  p.m.  there  was  a  very  fine  aurora,  large 
beams  making  very  extensive  curtains  from  E.  to  S.  up  to  an 
altitude  of  45  °,  and  with  characteristic  black  sky  beneath  the 
arches.    The  colour  was  a  very  orange  yellow. 

Erebus  smoke  has  been  difficult  to  see,  no  long  stream  of 
smoke,  but  very  small  puffs  apparently  going  eastward  each  day. 

The  min.  temp,  last  night  was  -690,  and  to-day  we  had 
-66-6°  in  the  morning  and  -60-5°   at  10  p.m.     Light  south- 

*  Wilson  gives  this  under  July  i  for  the  night  of  June  30.     For  the  lowest  tempera- 
ture met,  see  under  July  6. 


8  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [July 

easterly  airs  and  north-easterly  airs  during  the  march,  at  these 
temperatures,  forced  us  all  to  adjust  our  noseguards. 

Note. — All  the  temperatures  and  weather  notes  in  this  report 
are  taken  directly  from  Bowers'  record.  Bowers  also  made  him- 
self responsible  for  the  sledgemeter  records,  and  for  notes  on  the 
condition  of  the  ice  on  Ross  Sea  when  we  were  at  Cape  Crozier. 
He  also  kept  full  notes  of  the  aurorae,  and  did  so  much  generally 
throughout  the  journey  and  with  so  much  persistence  notwith- 
standing the  difficulties  that  beset  us,  that  this  report  must  be 
considered  as  much  his  as  mine.  He  has  moreover  read  it  all 
through  and  has  materially  helped  me  in  making  it  complete. 
What  I  think  of  him  and  of  Cherry-Garrard  as  companions  for 
a  sledge  journey  of  this  kind  I  have  already  made  known  to  you, 
sir,  in  conversation.  It  would  be  impossible  to  say  too  much 
about  either  of  them.  I  think  their  patience  and  persistence  from 
beginning  to  end  was  what  made  five  weeks  of  discomfort  not 
only  bearable  but  much  more  than  pleasant.  I  have  added  this 
note  since  his  revision  of  the  report. 

Sunday,  July  2,191 1. — Min.  temp,  for  the  night  was  -  65-2°, 
and  this  notwithstanding  a  breeze  of  force  3  from  the  S.S.E.  with 
slight  drift.  The  temp,  during  the  day  ranged  from  -  6o°  to 
-  65  °  with  calm,  and  light  airs  which  again  made  us  adjust  nose 
nips.  After  their  use  this  day  and  yesterday,  however,  they  were 
unnecessary,  and  some  of  us  never  again  used  them. 

A  fog  bank  formed  along  the  Promontory  ridge  during  the 
afternoon,  but  rose,  and  later  dispersed  to  the  westward.  We  all 
noticed  that  our  frozen  fur  mits  thawed  out  on  our  hands  while 
it  lasted. 

Sunday,  July  2,  191 1  (continued) . — We  were  again  relaying 
to-day  by  daylight  from  1 1  a.m.  to  3  p.m.,  and  by  moonlight  in- 
stead of  candle  lamp  from  4.30  to  8  p.m.  This  was  the  first  we 
had  seen  of  the  new  moon.  As  it  passed  exactly  behind  the  sum- 
mit of  Erebus  it  gave  us  an  extraordinary  picture  of  an  eruption. 

We  had  a  fine  aurora  in  the  south  low  on  the  horizon  as  a  low 
curtain  and  arch,  with  a  very  striking  orange  colour  all  over. 

We  made  only  2}^  miles  in  the  day.  [A  terrible  day.  I  felt 
absolutely  done  up  at  lunch — three  frostbitten  toes  on  one  foot 
— and  heel  and  one  toe  on  the  other — burning  oil  is  all  that  keeps 
us  going  now — better  night  however.  We  are  getting  into  the 
swing  of  doing  everything  slowly  and  in  mits. 

I  have  pricked  six  or  seven  blisters  on  fingers  to-night.] 


i9zi]  REMARKABLE    AURORA  9 

Monday,  July  3,  1911. — The  min.  temp,  for  the  night  was 
—  650.  The  weather  was  calm  to  begin  with  and  clear,  but  be- 
came gradually  overcast  all  round,  starting  with  a  few  curve- 
backed  storm  clouds  over  Terror.  After  lunch  however  the  sky 
cleared  again  completely,  and  we  were  able  to  relay  by  moon- 
light in  the  afternoon.  We  had  made  only  1^2  miles  by  daylight 
in  the  forenoon  march,  and  in  the  whole  day  only  2}^  miles. 

The  temp,  ranged  from  —  5 20  to  -  58-2°. 

We  had  a  magnificent  display  of  auroral  curtains  between 
7.30  p.m.  and  8  p.m.,  during  which  four-fifths  of  the  eastern  half 
of  the  sky  was  covered  by  waving  curtains  right  up  to  the  zenith, 
where  they  were  all  swinging  round  from  left  to  right  in  fore- 
shortened, swaying  curtains  forming  a  rapidly  moving  whirl, 
constantly  altering  its  formation.  Some  of  the  lower  curtains 
were  very  brilliant  and  showed  bands  of  orange  and  green  and 
again  orange  fading  into  lemon  yellow  upwards.  Bowers  noted 
it  as  follows :  '  Remarkable  brilliant  aurora  working  from  the 
N.E.  to  the  zenith  and  spreading  over  two-thirds  of  the  sky. 
Curtain  form  in  interwoven  arcs,  curtains  being  propelled  along 
as  if  by  wind;  the  whole  finally  forming  a  vast  mushroom  over- 
head and  moving  towards  the  S.E.  Colours,  lemon  yellow,  green 
and  orange.' 

It  was  such  a  striking  display  that  we  all  three  halted  and  lay 
on  our  backs  for  a  long  time  watching  its  evolutions. 

Our  sleeping-bags  are  beginning  to  show  the  effect  of  these 
low  temperatures  notwithstanding  every  care  to  keep  them  and 
our  clothing  dry.  We  left  Cape  Evans  with  three  reindeer-skin 
bags  for  use  to  begin  with,  and  a  down  bag  each  as  a  reserve 
lining.  Cherry's  fur  bag  was  a  very  large  one,  much  too  large 
for  warmth  at  these  temperatures.  My  own  was  a  good  fit  for 
warmth,  but  became  so  small  when  wet  and  frozen  up  that  it 
broke  in  every  direction.  Bowers'  bag  was  the  right  size  for 
him,  but  also  broke  in  more  than  one  place  later  on  when  wet 
and  frozen.  All  were  as  good  as  could  be  wished  as  regards 
the  skins.  Cherry  has  been  so  cold  in  his  large  bag  with  the  hair 
inside  that  to-day  he  has  turned  it  to  hair  outside,  and  bent  his 
down  bag  as  a  lining  to  decrease  the  space. 

Bowers'  bag,  begun  with  hair  outside,  is  still  so  in  use.  My 
own,  begun  with  hair  inside,  is  still  so  in  use.  All  are  already 
rather  wet  and  stiff  when  frozen,   but  we  sleep  in  them  well 


io  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [July 

enough,  and  have  no  difficulty  in  rolling  them  up  and  unrolling 
them  at  night.  [Bill  having  cold  bad  nights — feels  it  a  bit  I 
think — I  have  been  half  falling  asleep  at  halts,  Birdie  ditto — sur- 
face a  little  better — foreshortening  the  mountains.  Clothes  for 
day  have  been  so  stiff  we  have  to  stop  in  position  we  just  stand 
in  when  we  get  out  of  tent.] 

Tuesday,  July  4,  191 1. — The  min.  temp,  for  the  night  was 

—  65-4°,  but  on  turning  out  at  7.20  A.M.  we  found  the  sky  com- 
pletely overcast  and  snow  falling,  with  occasional  gusts  from 
E.N.E.  to  S.  and  S.S.E.     At  9.30  a.m.  the  temp,  had  risen  to 

-  27-5°,  with  a  wind  force  of  4  from  the  N.E. 

Nothing  was  visible  anywhere  by  which  to  make  a  course, 
so  we  had  breakfast  and  turned  in  again.  We  were  warm  and 
comfortable  all  day,  but  though  there  were  signs  of  clearing  by 
night  time  we  had  to  do  without  a  march. 

The  min.  temp,  for  the  day  was  -44-5°,  and  during  the  fol- 
lowing night  -  54-6°. 

Everything  was  obscured  round  Erebus  and  Terror  by  clouds, 
though  later  it  became  possible  to  see  Terror  Point,  and  we  knew 
that  we  were  still  out  of  the  direct  path  of  the  southerly  blizzards 
which  sweep  round  Cape  Crozier. 

This  lie-in  has  saturated  our  clothing  through,  and  our  bur- 
berries stiffen  outside  the  tent  so  much  that  it  becomes  almost 
difficult  to  get  in  again  through  the  door.  Our  feet  so  far  have 
been  almost  constantly  warm,  except  on  the  march  when  plodding 
slowly  on  soft  snow.  We  had  then  to  keep  a  watchful  eye  on 
them  to  avoid  getting  frostbitten  toes  or  heels.  I  regretted  hav- 
ing left  my  puttees  behind,  as  the  additional  wrapping  round  the 
ankles  would  have  been  a  great  protection  to  the  feet. 

We  are  using  oil  in  the  double  tent  now,  after  cooking  is  done, 
to  dry  and  thaw  out  socks  and  finnesko  before  putting  them  on 
in  the  morning.  It  has  seemed  to  us  an  almost  necessary  precau- 
tion at  these  temperatures  unless  one  is  prepared  to  take  the  damp 
socks  into  the  sleeping-bag  every  night,  and  this  with  so  many 
weeks  ahead  of  us  we  are  loath  to  do,  as  we  are  trying  our  best 
to  keep  the  bags  dry  in  many  ways — for  instance,  we  kept  our 
pyjama  trousers  and  pyjama  jackets  only  for  night  wear  to  begin 
with,  until  they  became  so  wet  and  stiff  that  in  order  to  wear 
them  at  all  they  had  to  be  kept  on  permanently.  From  the  day  of 
the  blizzard  incident   at  Cape   Crozier  back  to   Cape   Evans, 


i9ii]  CLOTHES    FROZEN    HARD  u 

neither  Bowers  nor  I  made  use  of  our  jackets,  however,  at  all — 
they  were  stowed  away,  stiff,  in  the  tank,  and  so  returned  home. 

Wednesday,  July  5,  191 1. — At  3  A.M.  the  whole  sky  was 
clearing  and  at  7  A.M.  we  turned  out.  The  surface  was  now 
worse  than  we  had  as  yet  experienced,  and  we  moved  dreadfully 
slowly  with  one  sledge  load  at  a  time.  In  7^  hours  hauling  we 
only  made  1  y2  miles  good. 

The  min.  temp,  last  night  was  -  54-6°,  and  by  the  evening  the 
temp,  had  dropped  to  -  6i-i°.  We  were  then  surrounded  by  a 
white  fog,  but  could  see  Erebus  and  Terror.  The  cirro-stratus 
gave  a  white-looking  sky  in  the  moonlight  and  a  fair  halo  with 
mock  moons  and  vertical  beams  and  a  particularly  well-defined 
mock  moon  beneath  on  the  horizon. 

All  day  we  had  been  hauling  up  hill,  and  we  hoped  it  was 
Terror  Point  we  were  crossing.  Settlements  of  the  crust  occurred 
regularly  again  at  short  intervals.  The  surface  still  shows  no 
sign  of  windcut  sastrugi,  and  though  much  of  it  is  wind-hardened 
and  smooth,  it  appears  to  be  the  result  of  variable  winds  of  no 
great  force,  and  it  is  also  covered  to  a  very  great  extent  by  deep 
sheets  of  soft  snow,  on  which  the  sledges  hang  up  exactly  as 
though  they  were  going  over  sand.  There  is  no  surface  marking 
on  this  snow  except  marks  resembling  horses'  hoofs,  with  edges 
that  have  a  peculiar  planed-off  appearance. 

Whether  harder  or  softer,  the  whole  surface  is  crusted  and 
lets  one's  feet  in  for  a  couple  of  inches,  spoiling  one's  pull  on  the 
sticky-runnered  sledges. 

Thursday,  July  6,  191 1. — Again  a  calm  day  and  clear,  though 
a  heavy  bank  of  fog  lies  over  the  pressure  ridges  ahead  of  us, 
and  over  the  seaward  area  to  the  east. 

We  had  relay  work  again  on  a  very  heavy  surface,  which, 
however,  improved  slightly  in  the  afternoon.  But  the  result  of 
73^2  hours'  hauling  was  a  forward  move  of  1  y2  miles  only. 

The  min.  temp,  for  the  night  had  been  -75*3°.  At  starting 
in  the  morning  it  was  -  70-2°  and  at  noon  -  76-8°.  At  5.15  P.M., 
when  we  camped  for  lunch,  it  was  —  77 °  exactly,  and  at  midnight 
it  had  risen  again  to  -  69 °,  when  there  was  some  low-lying  white 
fog  and  mist  to  the  N.  and  N.N.W.  The  butter,  when  stabbed 
with  a  knife,  '  flew  '  like  very  brittle  toffee.  Our  paraffin  at  these 
temperatures  was  perfectly  easy  to  pour,  though  there  was  just 
a  trace  of  opalescent  milkiness  in  its  appearance. 


12  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [July 

Friday,  July  7,  191 1. — We  got  away  late,  at  noon,  in  a  thick 
white  fog  in  which  it  was  impossible  to  see  where  we  were  going. 
We  still  had  to  relay,  though  the  surface  had  distinctly  improved. 
There  was  no  sign  of  wind  sastrugi  yet. 

After  lunch,  which  we  finished  about  6.30  p.m.,  we  got  an  in- 
distinct view  of  the  mountains,  and  saw  we  were  beginning  to 
close  Mt.  Terra  Nova  with  Mt.  Terror,  but  the  fog  came  down 
again  at  once,  and  at  9.45  P.M.  we  camped,  as  we  were  unable  to 
guess  at  all  what  direction  we  had  been  making.  We  only  made 
one  and  two-thirds  miles  good  in  the  day. 

The  min.  temp,  for  the  night  from  12  to  2  P.M.  had  been 
-75-8°.     At  2  p.m.  it  was  -58-3°,  and  at  7  p.m.  had  risen  to 

-  55-4°,  a  change  which  we  felt  as  a  grateful  one  both  in  our  hands 
and  feet  on  the  march.  [There  is  something  after  all  rather  good 
in  doing  something  never  done  before — these  temperatures  must 
be  world's  record.] 

Saturday,  July  8,  191 1. — A  day  of  white  fog  and  high  moon- 
light but  without  a  trace  of  landmark  to  guide  us.  We  relayed  as 
usual,  four  hours  in  the  forenoon,  for  1  y±  miles,  and  three  hours 
in  the  afternoon  for  one  mile  only.  We  were  on  a  better  surface, 
either  more  windswept  or  else  improved  by  the  rise  in  tempera- 
ture, but  still  deep  and  soft  to  walk  in,  though  often  with  harder 
crusted  areas.  Here  and  there  were  really  hard  and  slippery 
windswept  snow  surfaces  occurring  under  a  covering  of  some 
inches  of  quite  soft  snow,  showing  the  peculiar  planed-off  appear- 
ance which  was  always  associated  with  horse-shoe  impressions 
and  very  heavy  dragging.  We  made  our  course  to-day  by 
compass. 

The  min.  temp,  for  the  night  was  -  59*8°  and  at  10.30  A.M. 

—  52-3°,  with  south-easterly  airs,  and-470  at  7.15  p.m. 

Sunday,  July  9,  191 1. — Dense  mist,  and  white  fog  [the  fourth 
day  of  fog],  and  snow  falling  all  day,  made  relaying  impossible, 
but  we  found  we  could  manage  the  two  sledges  together  again  on 
the  improving  surface. 

Our  chief  difficulty  was  to  avoid  gradually  and  unwittingly 
mounting  the  slopes  of  Mt.  Terror  to  our  left,  where  there  are 
any  number  of  crevassed  patches  of  ice,  and  running  into  the 
pressure  ridges  on  our  right.  Between  these  two  lay  an  area  of 
more  or  less  level  land  ice  which  was  safe  going — but  in  two  or 
three  places  I  knew  it  was  necessary  to  cross  long  snow  capes  run- 


i9n]  MT.    TERROR  13 

ning  across  our  path  from  Mt.  Terror — and  here,  if  one  wished 
to  avoid  very  long  uphill  drags  one  had  to  approach  the  pressure 
ridges  fairly  closely — a  thing  quite  easy  with  daylight,  but  afford- 
ing us  constant  trouble  in  the  dark  and  fog  which  hampered  us 
all  along  this  part  of  our  journey. 

To-day  no  landmarks  were  visible  at  all.  We  made  a  little 
over  one  mile  in  the  forenoon  and  Y^  mile  more  in  the  afternoon. 
It  was  a  great  relief  to  have  done  so  without  relaying.  The 
moon  was  invisible  [only  a  glow  where  she  is]  and  everything 
was  obscured  by  fog,  but  the  surface  was  improving  every  hour. 
In  the  afternoon  we  ran  into  crevassed  ground,  after  having  sus- 
pected we  were  pulling  the  sledges  up  and  down  several  rises  of 
moderate  gradient.  As  we  expected  this,  however,  before  reach- 
ing the  second  long  snow  cape,  we  went  on.  The  surface  was 
again  hard  and  icy  in  places,  with  sometimes  six  inches  of  snow 
loose  upon  it.  Our  feet  went  through  this  snow  and  slipped  upon 
the  ivory-hard  surface  underneath.  This  was  often  near  the  top 
of  the  ridges.  In  the  hollows  the  surface  was  deep  and  soft  and 
crusted.  One  could  judge  much  of  the  nature  of  the  surface,  and 
of  the  chance  of  finding  crevasses,  by  the  sound  and  by  the  feel 
of  one's  feet  on  the  snow,  without  seeing  anything  at  all  of  the 
surface  one  was  covering.  Occasionally  the  moonlit  fog  allowed 
an  edge  to  be  lit  up  here  and  there,  but  the  surface  is  so  extraor- 
dinarily uniform  and  featureless  that  we  believe  we  are  still  well 
out  of  the  windswept  line  of  southerly  blizzard  and  still  in  an 
area  of  eddying  winds,  heavy  snowfall,  and  constant  fogs  formed 
by  the  meeting  of  cold  Barrier  air  with  the  warmer,  moister  air 
which  comes  up  from  the  sea  ice,  and  especially  from  the  innu- 
merable fissures  of  the  pressure  ridges.    We  called  this  Fog  Bay. 

The  moon  had  again  become  visible  almost  overhead,  but 
nothing  else,  until  just  as  we  found  ourselves  going  up  a  longer 
rise  and  a  steeper  one  than  usual  we  saw  a  grey,  irregular,  moun- 
tainous-looking horizon  confronting  us  close  ahead.  So  here  we 
unhitched  from  the  sledges,  and  tying  our  lanyards  together  into 
a  central  knot,  we  walked  up  about  50  yards  of  icy  slope  inter- 
spersed with  cracks,  and  having  reached  the  top  found  we  had  an- 
other similar  broken  and  irregular  horizon  ahead  of  us  and  an- 
other on  our  left.  These  were  obviously  the  pressure  ridges,  and 
when  we  stood  still  we  could  hear  a  creaking  and  groaning  of  the 
ice  underneath  and  around  us,  which  convinced  us,  and  later  led 


i4  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [July 

us  to  think  that  the  tidal  action  of  the  coast  here  was  taken  up 
in  part  at  any  rate  by  the  pressure  ridges  without  forming  any 
definite  tide  crack. 

This  excursion  from  our  sledges  gave  us,  as  we  thought,  our 
right  direction  for  the  safer  land  ice,  but  on  turning  ourselves  with 
them  in  that  direction,  we  found  we  were  still  running  into  the 
same  crevassed  mounds  and  ridges,  so,  finding  a  hollow  with 
deeper  snow  in  it,  we  camped  for  the  night,  and  decided  to  wait 
until  we  could  see  exactly  where  we  had  got  to. 

The  absence  of  a  well-marked  tide  crack — which  had  rather 
puzzled  us  in  the  Discovery  days — in  the  crossing  of  land-ice 
slopes  such  as  Terror  Point  (Cape  McKay)  and  the  'second 
snowcape,'  both  of  which  come  straight  down  from  Terror  and 
run  into  the  pressure  ridges,  was  a  question  which  we  had  in  our 
minds  all  these  days.  We  assuredly  did  cross  several  small  cracks 
on  these  slopes  which  had  the  appearance  of  a  certain  amount  of 
working,  but  their  breadth  was  a  matter  of  a  couple  of  inches 
only,  and  if  tidal  they  must  take  up  only  an  insignificant  fraction 
of  the  movement.  They  are  so  small  that  they  may  easily  have 
been  obscured  by  snowfall  in  the  old  days.  Bowers  is  convinced 
they  are  to  be  considered  tidal  cracks.  I  am  not  so  sure  myself, 
and  hope  to  have  a  better  view  of  them  by  daylight  before  decid- 
ing whether  there  is  anything  to  take  up  tidal  movement  besides 
the  pressure  ridges,  which  seem  to  me  more  than  sufficient. 

This  day  the  temp,  ranged  from  -36-7°  up  to  -270,  with 
light  airs  northerly  and  southerly. 

Some  hours  after  midnight  it  began  to  blow  and  to  snow  more 
heavily. 

The  min.  temp,  for  the  night  was  -  24-5°  up  to  noon  the  next 
day. 

Monday,  July  10,  191 1. — By  noon  a  blizzard  was  blowing 
from  the  S.S.W.,  of  force  6  to  8,  and  the  air  was  as  thick  as  could 
be  with  snow.  This  continued  all  day,  and  we  lay  wet  and  warm 
in  our  bags,  listening  to  the  periodic  movements  of  the  ice  pres- 
sure, apparently  tidal  to  some  extent,  beneath  and  about  us. 

Tuesday,  July  11,  191 1. — The  temp,  at  10  A.M.  went  up  to 
+  7'8°  'a  rise  of  over  8o°  from  the  record  minimum,'  and  at 
8  P.M.  was  still  +  6-8°,  with  a  minimum  for  the  day  of  +  3-2°. 
The  wind  came  from  S.W.,  force  5  to  9,  and  very  squally.  This 
continued  all  day  with  a  very  considerable  snowfall  which  packed 


i9ii]  REVISED    RATIONS  15 

our  tent  in  1  y2  to  2  feet  all  round,  as  well  as  all  our  sledge  gear. 
Cherry  is  still  in  his  down  bag  inside  the  reindeer  with  fur  out- 
side. Bowers  still  as  he  started,  with  fur  outside.  I  turned  my 
bag  yesterday  from  fur  inside  to  fur  outside.  The  rise  in  tem- 
perature and  the  long  lie-in  during  this  blizzard  have  steamed 
us  and  our  clothes  into  a  very  sodden  wet  condition,  and  one  won- 
dered what  a  return  to  low  temperatures  would  effect. 

We  have  been  discussing  our  respective  rations,  and  they  have 
been  somewhat  revised  as  follows : 

On  July  6  Cherry  felt  the  need  for  more  food,  and  would 
have  chosen  fat,  either  butter  or  pemmican,  had  he  not  been  ex- 
perimenting on  a  large  biscuit  allowance.  So  he  increased  his 
biscuits  to  twelve  a  day,  and  found  that  it  did  away  to  some  extent 
with  his  desire  for  more  food  and  fat.  But  he  occasionally  had 
heartburn,  and  has  certainly  felt  the  cold  more  than  Bowers  and 
I  have,  and  has  had  more  frostbite  in  hands,  feet,  and  face  than 
we  have. 

I  have  altogether  failed  to  eat  anything  approaching  my 
allowance  of  8  ozs.  of  butter  a  day.  The  most  I  have  managed 
has  been  about  2  or  3  ozs. 

Bowers  has  also  found  it  impossible  to  eat  his  extra  allow- 
ance of  pemmican  for  lunch. 

So  yesterday,  that  is,  a  fortnight  out,  we  decided  that  Cherry 
and  I  should  both  alter  our  dietary,  he  to  take  4  ozs.  a  day 
of  my  butter  and  I  to  take  two  of  his  biscuits,  i.e.  4  ozs.,  in 
exchange. 

This  brought  Cherry's  diet  and  mine  to  the  same.  Bowers 
continued  his  diet,  taking  his  extra  pemmican  when  he  felt  it 
possible — but  this  became  increasingly  less  frequent  and  all  the 
way  home  he  went  without  it. 

Cherry's  diet  and  mine  was  now,  per  diem: 

Pemmican 12  ozs. 

Biscuit 16  ozs. 

Butter 4  ozs.  (we  rarely  eat  more 

than  2  ozs.) 
Bowers'  diet  was  now : 

Pemmican .      12  ozs. 

Biscuit 16  ozs. 

Extra  pemmican    ....        4  ozs.  (rarely  eaten). 


1 6  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [July 

Our  daily  routine  was,  for  breakfast,  to  have  first  tea,  then 
pemmican  and  biscuit;  for  lunch,  tea  and  biscuit  (and  butter 
for  Cherry  and  myself)  ;  for  supper,  hot  water  and  pemmican 
and  biscuit. 

We  none  of  us  missed  sugar  or  cocoa,  or  any  of  the  other 
foods  we  have  been  used  to  on  sledge  journeys,  and  we  all  found 
we  were  amply  satisfied  on  this  diet.  Cocoa  would  have  been 
pleasanter  at  night  than  plain  hot  water,  but  the  hot  water  with 
biscuit  soaked  in  it  was  very  good. 

We  still  carry  out  the  brush  routine  every  time  we  break 
camp,  to  clear  away  all  the  rime  formed  on  the  inner  tent 
lining.  The  outer  tent  is  extraordinarily  free  from  frost — and 
remained  so  to  the  day  we  returned  to  Cape  Evans.  The  lower 
skirts  of  the  inner  tent,  however,  are  solid  with  ice. 

Towards  evening  the  wind  abated  considerably,  and  parts 
of  Mt.  Terror  came  into  view,  but  during  the  night  the  wind 
came  on  again  with  much  snow  and  violent  gusts,  increasing  at 
times  to  force  10.  We  were  unable  to  march.  The  min.  temp, 
for  the  night  was  —  7-6°. 

Wednesday,  July  12,  191 1. — We  were  compelled  to  remain 
in  our  bags  again  all  day.  Wind  from  S.W.,  force  10,  and 
squally  up  to  force  9  all  the  afternoon,  with  much  drift.  Temp, 
up  to  -f-  2-9°  again  in  the  morning.  Towards  night  there  were 
lulls,  and  at  3  a.m.  the  wind  ceased.  Bowers  turned  his  bag 
from  hair  outside  to  hair  inside,  his  first  change  since  starting. 

Thursday,  July  13,  191 1. — After  digging  out  our  sledges  and 
tent,  which  were  pretty  deeply  buried  in  drift,  we  had  a  really 
good  day's  march,  making  7^  miles  in  7%  hours  with  both 
sledges.  [Seems  a  marvellous  run.]  During  our  march,  in  our 
effort  to  avoid  the  pressure  ridges  on  our  right,  we  got  imper- 
ceptibly somehow  too  high  up  on  to  the  slopes  of  Terror  and 
were  held  up  by  a  very  wide  crevasse  with  an  unsafe  looking 
sunken  lid,  which  we  caught  sight  of  in  a  momentary  break  of 
moonlight  just  in  time  to  avoid  it.  We  turned  down  its  side 
and  found  it  was  one  of  a  number  that  marked  a  low  mound 
in  the  land  ice  slopes.  We  made  out  east  again  to  get  once  more 
into  the  safety  limit  of  land  ice  on  the  flat,  which  seemed  very 
narrow  in  the  dark. 

We  camped  about  8  P.M.  Min.  temp,  for  last  night  was 
-  22-2°   and  by  the   evening  the  temperature  had  dropped  to 


i9ii]  APPROACHING    THE    KNOLL  17 

-  28-6°,  but  there  was  still  a  lot  of  cirro-stratus  about,  which 
the  blizzard  doesn't  seem  to  have  cleared  away.  There  were 
also  windy-looking  clouds  about,  with  lunar  coronae  and  occa- 
sional halos.  During  the  daylight  there  was  a  very  striking  rosy 
glow  all  over  the  northern  sky  even  up  to  the  summit  of  Mt. 
Terror.  The  whole  sky  was  a  rich  rosy  purple,  due  to  a  thin 
cirro-stratus  or  alti-stratus  I  think. 

The  new  surface  was  very  flat,  and  very  windswept,  but  not 
cut  into  sastrugi  at  all.  Most  of  the  new  areas  are  low,  flat, 
soft  drifts,  or  low  mounds,  slightly  rounded  at  the  top  and  of 
large  area.  The  softer  areas  have  still  the  shaved  or  planed-off 
appearance  with  none  but  the  horse-hoof  shaped  impressions 
on  the  surface. 

Friday,  July  14,  191 1. — We  made  five  and  one-third  miles 
in  all  to-day  by  a  good  morning  march,  but  an  afternoon  march 
cut  short  by  a  complete  loss  of  all  light.  After  lunch  we  once 
more  found  we  had  overdone  our  easting  and  had  run  again 
into  one  of  the  higher  pressure  ridges.  We  turned  north  from 
it  and  encountered  more  crevasses,  but  by  zig-zagging  and  sound- 
ing in  advance  on  a  longer  trace  we  succeeded  in  getting  clear 
of  them.  We  had  the  Knoll  before  us  at  the  time  while  there 
was  light  enough  to  see  it.  Our  moonlight  was,  however,  all 
but  spent,  so  much  of  it  had  been  lost  in  fogs  and  blizzard  and 
bad  weather.  We  were  making  for  rather  east  of  the  Knoll 
to-day  in  our  endeavour  to  keep  within  the  flat  area  of  land  ice. 
Sastrugi  were  increasing  rapidly  here,  and  we  were  now  entering 
the  true  path  of  the  southerly  blizzard. 

The  min.  temp,  for  the  night  had  been  -  350.  At  8.30  A.M. 
it  was  —  I7'4°,  and  in  the  afternoon  and  evening  it  was  -  24-6°. 
[The  experiences  so  lightly  passed  over  in  the  official  account 
were  sufficiently  thrilling  in  themselves.  The  other  diary 
records : 

Rather  a  hair-raising  day — very  bad  night — by  hard  slogging 
2^4.  miles  this  morning — then  on  in  thick  gloom  which  suddenly 
lifted  and  we  found  ourselves  under  a  huge  great  mountain  of 
pressure  rid^e  looking  black  in  shadow — we  went  on  bending  to 
left  when  Bill  fell  and  put  his  arm  into  a  crevasse — we  went  over 
this  and  another  and  some  time  after  got  somewhere  up  to  left, 
and  both  Bill  and  I  put  a  foot  into  a  crevasse — we  sounded  all 
about  and  everywhere  was  hollow,  and  so  we  ran  the  sledge 

VOL.    II— 2 


1 3  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [July 

down  over  it  and  all  was  well.     My  nerves  were  about  on  edge 
at  end  of  day.] 

At  the  Knoll 

Saturday,  July  15,  191 1. — The  min.  temp,  for  the  night  was 
-  34-5°,  but  at  10.30  a.m.  it  was  —  19-2°,  with  a  breeze  of  force 
3  from  the  S.S.W.  We  got  a  clear  view  this  morning,  however, 
and  could  see  the  moraine  shelf  facing  the  Knoll,  where  we  had 
decided  to  build  our  stone  hut.  We  had  a  short,  steep,  uphill 
three  miles'  pull  over  very  hard  and  deep-cut  sastrugi  to  this 
spot,  and  then,  rounding  the  lower  end  of  the  moraine,  we  found 
ourselves  in  the  Knoll  gap  and  pitched  our  last  outward  camp 
in  a  large  open  smooth  snow  hollow,  hard  and  windswept  as  to 
surface,  but  in  places  not  cut  up  by  sastrugi.  This  camp  lay 
about  150  yards  below  the  ridge  where  we  proposed  to  build 
our  stone  hut.  [Here  we  are  after  a  real  slog — 700  feet  up, 
camped  on  very  hard  snow  with  our  hut  site  chosen  off  to  W. 
on  some  moraine — we  have  been  discussing  what  to  call  the  hut 
which  we  hope  to  build  under  a  big  boulder  on  the  slope,  walling 
one  side  of  it — Terra  Igloo  I  expect.  It  seems  too  good  to  be 
true — 19  days  out,  this  is  our  15th  camp- — four  days'  blizzard. 
Surely  seldom  has  anyone  been  so  wet — our  bags  hardlv  possible 
to  get  into — our  windclothes  just  frozen  boxes.  Birdie's  patent 
balaclava  is  like  iron — it  is  wonderful  how  our  cares  have  van- 
ished.] We  had  originally  intended  building  on  the  Adelie 
penguin  rookery,  but  so  much  of  our  time  has  been  taken  up  in 
getting  here,  and  our  oil  was  already  so  short,  that  we  decided 
to  build  as  close  as  we  could  to  our  work  with  the  Emperor 
penguins,  and  take  the  chance  of  doing  so  in  the  blizzard  area. 
In  the  Adelie  penguin  rookery  we  should  have  been  out  of  the 
blizzards,  but  five  miles  from  our  principal  work.  We  hoped, 
however,  to  find  something  of  a  lee  for  our  hut,  and  to  put  up 
with  the  blizzards. 

On  the  ridge  top  above  the  snow  hollow  where  we  were 
camped  was  a  low,  rough  mass  of  rock  in  situ  with  a  quantity 
of  loose  rock  masses  of  erratics  of  various  kinds,  some  granite, 
some  hard  basalt,  and  some  crumbly  volcanic  lava  lying  around. 
There  was  also  a  lot  of  rough  gravel  and  plenty  of  hard  snow 
which  could  be  cut  into  paving  stone  slabs.  So  here  we  had 
all  the  material  we  wanted,  and  as  the  corner  under  the  rock 


i9ii]  BUILDING   THE    HUT  19 

in  situ  [which,  it  was  hoped,  would  make  a  large  part  of  one 
of  the  walls]  was  too  solidly  iced  up  with  ice  and  gravel  to  clear 
out,  we  chose  a  spot  [a  moderately  level  piece  of  moraine] 
some  6  or  8  yards  on  the  lee  side  of  the  actual  ridge,  a  position 
which  we  thought  would  be  out  of  the  wind's  force  itself,  but 
which  we  eventually  found  was  all  the  more  dangerous  for  that 
reason,  as  it  was  right  in  the  spot  where  the  upward  suction 
was  to  be  at  its  greatest.  At  lunch  time,  4.15  p.m.,  we  still  had 
a  southerly  wind  of  force  4,  with  the  temp,  at  -  130,  and  this 
wind  we  found  to  be  due  to  the  more  or  less  constant  flow  of  cold 
air  down  from  the  slopes  of  Terror. 

We  had  a  magnificent  outlook  from  this  spot  where  we  were 
building  our  hut.  To  the  east  we  looked  out  over  the  Great 
Barrier  with  the  whole  range  of  pressure  ridges  laid  out  at  our 
feet,  about  800  feet  below  [looking  as  if  giants  had  been  plough- 
ing up  with  ploughs  which  made  furrows  40  or  50  feet  high]. 
To  the  north  and  N.E.  we  had  the  Knoll,  and  beyond  it  a  clear 
open  view  over  the  ice  of  the  Ross  Sea.  And  to  the  south  we 
looked  along  the  path  we  had  come  along  the  slopes  of  Terror, 
stretching  away  towards  the  Bluff,  while  on  our  right  these  slopes 
climbed  up  to  the  summit  of  Mt.  Terror,  which  was  plainly  visi- 
ble against  the  sky. 

We  saw  that  Ross  Sea  was  completely  frozen  over.  No  open 
leads  were  to  be  seen,  but  much  of  the  ice  appeared  to  be  young 
and  thin,  with  little  snow  on  it.  These  and  the  following  notes 
on  the  ice  of  Ross  Sea  were  kept  by  Bowers. 

I  began  the  use  of  my  eiderdown  bag  to-day  inside  the  rein- 
deer bag  with  the  fur  outside,  and  after  this  made  no  change 
till  the  day  we  reached  Cape  Evans  again. 

Sunday,  July  16,  191 1. — To-day  looking  over  Ross  Sea  we 
saw  a  cloud  of  frost  smoke  drifting  eastward  along  the  Cape 
Crozier  cliffs,  evidently  from  an  open  lead  along  the  coast. 
Otherwise  the  sea  was  covered  by  an  unbroken  sheet  of  ice. 

The  temp,  varied  to-day  between  -  20-8°  and  -  28-5°.  and  we 
again  had  the  south-westerly  breeze  of  force  3  to  5  coming 
down  our  snow  slope  from  Mt.  Terror.  The  weather  was  clear 
in  the  morning,  but  became  hazy  with  cirro-stratus  and  fog  soon 
after  noon  from  the  south. 

We  worked  at  the  stone  hut  all  the  daylight  and  as  long 
as  we  could  see  by  the  waning  moonlight,   and  while  Cherry 


20  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [July 

built  up  the  walls,  Bowers  and  I  collected  rocks  and  piled  up  the 
outside  of  the  walls  with  snow  slabs  and  gravel.  We  had  a  pick 
and  a  shovel  to  work  with. 

[It  was  quite  a  question  what  it  was  to  be  called:  in  his 
Diary  Bill  called  it  '  Oriana  Hut,'  and  the  ridge  the  Oriana 
ridge :  we  discussed  '  Terra  Igloo,'  '  Bleak  House,'  '  The  House 
on  the  Hill.' 

Birdie  gathered  rocks  from  over  the  hill,  nothing  was  too 
big  for  him.  Bill  did  the  banking  up  outside.  The  stones  were 
good,  the  snow,  however,  was  blown  so  hard  as  to  be  practi- 
cally ice:  a  pick  made  little  impression  upon  it,  and  the  only 
way  was  to  chip  out  big  blocks  gradually  by  the  small  shovel. 

There  was  now  little  moonlight  or  daylight,  but  for  the  next 
two  days  we  used  both  to  their  utmost,  being  up  at  all  times 
by  day  and  night,  and  often  working  on  when  there  was  great 
difficulty  to  see  anything:  one  day  Birdie  was  digging  with  the 
hurricane  lamp  by  his  side.] 

The  hut  was  placed  so  as  to  escape  the  force  of  the  southerly 
wind  under  the  moraine  ridge.  We  were  about  800  feet  above 
sea  level.  Our  method  of  construction  was  to  build  four  walls 
of  solid  rock,  leaving  a  small  gap  for  a  door  in  the  lee  end. 
The  weather  wall  was  highest,  and  the  breadth  of  the  hut  was 
"lYz  to  8  ft.,  so  that  the  9-foot  sledge  rested  across  from  wall 
to  wall  as  a  cross  rafter  to  support  the  canvas  roof.  The  two 
side  walls  were  built  up  to  the  height  of  the  weather  wall  at 
the  weather  end,  but  were  not  so  high  by  a  couple  of  feet  at 
the  door  end.    The  length  of  the  hut  was  about  10  ft. 

Against  the  outer  side  of  the  rock-walls  were  laid  large 
slabs  of  hard  snow  like  paving  stones,  each  having  its  icy  wind- 
swept surface  outside.  Between  the  slabs  of  snow  and  the  rock 
walls  we  shovelled  moraine  gravel.  Over  all  this  fell  the  canvas 
roof,  anchored  by  lanyards  to  heavy  rocks  all  round,  and  bat- 
tened down  to  its  outer  side  again  by  a  double  banking  of  ice 
slabs  and  gravel;  finally,  every  crevice  was  packed  in  by  hand 
with  soft  snow  until  the  whole  wall  was  uniformly  tight  all 
round.  The  work  took  us  all  the  light  we  had  of  three  days 
to  finish.  The  canvas  roof  was  made  so  ample  in  size  that  it 
came  right  down  to  the  ground  on  the  weather  side  and  more 
than  haff-way  down  all  the  other  sides.  This,  we  thought,  could 
not  fail  to  make  the  walls  tight  when  packed  in  and  over  as 


i9«]  HIGH    WINDS  21 

explained  above,  but  it  completely  failed  to  keep  out  either  snow 
drift  or  gravel  dust  when  the  wind  began  to  blow  in  earnest 
later  on,  for  both  drift  and  dust  poured  in  through  every  crack 
between  the  stones  of  the  weather  walls  and  lee  walls  without 
shifting  any  of  the  more  bulky  packing  at  all. 

Monday,  July  17,  191 1. — We  continued  with  the  hut  and 
spent  the  whole  of  available  daylight  and  moonlight  in  getting 
on  with  the  walls,  which  were  all  but  finished  for  placing  the  roof 
and  door.    For  this  we  want  a  calm  if  possible. 

We  began  work  to-day  in  a  light  air,  but  it  was  blowing  again 
with  force  3  from  the  S.W.  from  noon  onwards,  and  the  temp,  all 
day  varied  between  -  19-5°  and  -  23-3°.  The  sky  was  overcast. 
[Birdie  was  very  disappointed  that  we  could  not  finish  the  whole 
thing  that  day,  but  there  was  a  lot  to  do  yet,  and  we  were  tired 
out.  We  turned  out  early  the  next  day  to  try  and  get  the  roof 
on,  but  it  was  blowing  hard.  {Tuesday,  iSth.)  When  we  got 
to  the  top  we  did  some  digging,  &c,  but  it  was  quite  impossible 
to  try  and  get  the  roof  on,  and  we  had  to  leave  it.  We  realised 
this  day  that  it  blew  much  harder  at  the  top  of  the  slope  than 
where  our  tent  was  pitched.  It  was  bitterly  cold  up  there  that 
morning.] 

Over  Ross  Sea  are  now  two  open  leads  of  water  like  broad 
irregular  streets  extending  from  the  Cape  Crozier  cliffs  away  to 
the  N.E.  and  lying  more  or  less  parallel  to  one  another. 

Tuesday,  July  18,  191 1. — No  leads  or  open  water  were  vis- 
ible to-day  over  Ross  Sea.  The  temp.,  -  26-5°  to  -  27-3°,  with 
S.S.W.  wind  of  force  4  to  5  all  day,  made  work  almost  impossible 
at  the  hut.  We  got  everything  ready  for  placing  and  fixing  the 
roof,  but  could  n't  do  it  in  the  wind.  We  left  the  work  at  noon 
and  turned  in  to  spend  a  very  cold  night,  a  thing  which  we  gen- 
erally found  was  the  consequence  of  not  having  done  any  hard 
work  or  marching  during  the  day.  [During  this  time  our  bags 
were  getting  worse  and  worse,  but  were  still  very  possible,  and 
we  always  looked  forward  to  the  days  of  the  '  Stone  Age  '  when 
the  blubber  stove  should  be  going  and  we  were  to  dry  everything. 
When  we  arrived  we  had  begun  our  fifth  out  of  six  tins  of  oil,  and 
we  were  economising  oil  as  much  as  possible,  often  only  having 
two  hot  meals  a  day. 

It  was  curious  how  the  estimate  of  how  much  oil  was  neces- 
sary to  our  return,  diminished  as  our  stock  decreased:    at  first 


22  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [July 

we  said  we  must  have  at  least  two  gallons  to  go  back  with :  then 
about  Terror  Point  a  tin  and  two  full  primus  lamps;  until  it 
came  down  to  one  full  gallon  tin,  and  this  is  what  we  actually  did 
use.] 

Wednesday,  July  19,  191 1. — As  it  was  a  fine,  calm  day  we 
decided  to  use  it  in  an  effort  to  reach  the  Emperor  rookery  and 
get  some  blubber,  as  our  last  can  of  oil  but  one  was  already  run- 
ning low  and  we  had  determined  to  keep  the  last  can  untouched 
for  the  journey  home.  We  started  down  at  9.30  a.m.,  just  as 
dawn  appeared  on  the  horizon  in  the  east.  We  took  an  empty- 
sledge,  with  a  couple  of  ice  axes,  Alpine  rope,  harnesses,  and  skin- 
ning tools.  We  had  about  a  mile  to  go  down  snow  slopes  to  the 
edge  of  the  first  pressure  ridge,  and  our  intention  was  to  keep 
close  in  under  the  land  ice  cliffs  which  are  very  much  more  ex- 
tensive now  than  they  were  ten  years  ago.  Then  we  hoped  to 
get  in  under  the  actual  rock  cliffs  which  had  always  been  the  best 
way  down  to  the  rookery  in  the  Discovery  days.  But  somehow 
we  got  down  by  a  slope  which  led  us  into  a  valley  between  the 
first  two  pressure  ridges,  and  we  found  it  impossible  to  get  back 
in  under  the  land  ice  cliffs.  Nor  had  we  then  seen  any  other 
way  down  from  the  land  ice  except  by  the  slope  we  followed. 
The  rest  was  apparently  all  ice  cliff  about  80  to  100  ft.  high.  We 
tried  again  and  again  to  work  our  way  in  to  the  left  where  the 
land  ice  cliffs  joined  the  rock  cliffs,  but  though  we  made  consider- 
able headway  now  and  then  along  snow  slopes  and  drift  ridges 
by  crossing  the  least  tumbled  parts  of  the  intervening  pressure 
lines,  we  yet  came  time  after  time  to  impossible  places  [with  too 
great  a  drop],  and  had  to  turn  back  and  try  another  way.  [Bill 
led  on  a  length  of  Alpine  rope  on  the  toggle  of  the  sledge.  Birdie 
was  in  his  harness  on  the  toggle,  and  I  was  in  my  harness  on  the 
rear  of  the  sledge.  Two  or  three  times  we  tried  to  get  down  the 
ice  slopes  to  the  comparatively  level  road  under  the  cliff,  but  it  was 
always  too  great  a  drop.  In  that  dim  light  every  proportion  was 
distorted,  and  some  of  the  places  we  actually  did  manage  to  nego- 
tiate with  ice  axes  and  Alpine  rope  looked  absolute  precipices, 
and  there  were  always  crevasses  at  the  bottom  if  you  slipped. 
This  day  I  went  into  various  crevasses  at  least  six  times,  once 
when  we  were  close  to  the  sea  going  right  in  to  my  waist,  rolling 
out  and  then  down  a  steep  slope  until  brought  up  by  Birdie  and 
Bill  on  the  rope.]     We  tried  one  possible  opening  after  another, 


i9n]  THE    HUT   ROOFED    IN  23 

and  all  led  to  further  impasses  until  the  daylight  was  two-thirds 
gone,  and  we  found  ourselves  faced  in  a  large  snow  hollow  by 
a  chaotic  pile  of  ice  blocks  and  snowdrifts  standing  almost  ver- 
tically in  our  path  and  all  round  us,  to  a  height  of  some  sixty  feet, 
and  completely  stopping  all  chance  of  progress  forward  [a  great 
cul-de-sac  which  probably  formed  the  end  of  the  two  ridges, 
where  they  butted  on  to  the  sea  ice].  Here  we  had  the  mortifica- 
tion of  hearing  the  cries  of  Emperor  penguins  echoed  to  us  by 
the  rock  cliffs  on  our  left.  We  were  still,  however,  out  of  sight 
of  the  rookery  and  we  had  still  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  chaotic 
pressure  to  cross  [to  be  caught  in  the  night  there  was  a  horrible 
idea],  so  we  reluctantly  gave  up  the  attempt  for  the  day  and  with 
great  caution  and  much  difficulty  owing  to  the  failing  light  re- 
traced the  steps  it  had  taken  us  about  three  hours  to  make.  We 
had  been  roped  together  the  whole  time  and  had  used  the  sledge 
continually  over  soft  and  rotten-looking  snow  bridges.  It  was 
dark  by  the  time  we  reached  safe  ground  after  clambering  about 
five  hours  to  no  purpose.  [Birdie  was  very  good  at  picking  the 
tracks  up  again.  At  last  we  lost  them  altogether  and  settled  we 
must  go  ahead.  As  a  matter  of  fact  we  picked  them  up  again, 
and  by  then  were  out  of  the  worst:  but  we  were  glad  to  see  the 
tent  again.] 

During  the  day  a  light  southerly  breeze  had  been  blowing 
with  a  clear  sky.  The  temp,  had  varied  from  —  300  with  south- 
westerly wind  of  force  2  at  4  p.m.  to  -370,  which  had  been  the 
minimum  in  the  early  morning  between  3  A.M.  and  9.30  A.M. 

There  was  again  some  frost  smoke  over  the  sea  ice  under  the 
Cape  Cliffs  and  a  small  shining  open  lead  of  water  in  the  offing. 

Thursday,  July  20,  191 1. — We  turned  out  at  3  A.M.  in  order 
to  get  our  hut  roof  fixed  on  and  made  safe  in  calm  weather,  and 
we  had  decided  to  make  another  attempt  when  day  came  at  9.30 
A.M.  to  reach  the  Emperor  rookery  and  get  the  blubber  which  we 
now  really  began  to  need.  We  got  the  roof  on  the  hut  and  made 
it  all  safe.  [Little  did  we  think  what  that  roof  had  in  store  for 
us  as  we  packed  it  in  with  snow  blocks,  stretching  it  over  our  sec- 
ond 8-ft.  sledge  which  we  put  athwartships  in  the  middle  of  the 
wall.  The  windward  end  came  right  down  to  the  ground,  and  we 
tied  it  down  securely  to  rocks  before  packing  it  in.  To  do  this 
we  had  a  good  two  feet  or  more  of  slack  all  round,  and  in  every 
case  we  tied  it  to  rocks  by  lanyards  at  intervals  of  every  two  feet. 


24  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [July 

The  door  was  the  difficulty,  and  for  the  present  we  left  the  cloth 
arching  over  the  stones  and  forming  a  kind  of  portico.  The 
whole  was  well  packed  over  with  slabs  of  hard  snow,  but  there 
was  no  soft  snow  with  which  to  fill  up  the  gaps  between  the 
blocks.]  We  then  had  breakfast  and  got  away  in  good  time  for 
the  pressure  ridges  before  day  broke.  We  had  the  same  equip- 
ment as  yesterday,  and  crampons  of  the  new  canvas  pattern  which 
Cherry  and  I  found  most  reliable  and  comfortable,  though 
Bowers  preferred  the  old  pattern  used  at  Hut  Point.  Going 
down  to-day  we  made  for  a  different  and  rather  narrow  slope 
leading  much  more  directly  down  to  the  foot  of  the  land  ice  cliffs. 
We  had  missed  it  yesterday  in  the  bad  light  when  walking  along 
the  cliff  tops  looking  for  a  way  down,  but  we  had  seen  it  from 
below  [at  a  place  where  there  was  a  break  in  the  big  ice  cliff]  and 
had  decided  to  try  for  it  to-day.  It  took  us  down  the  right  direc- 
tion [twice  we  crept  up  to  the  edge  of  the  cliff  with  no  success, 
but  the  third  time  we  found  the  ridge  down],  and  we  got  down 
directly  in  under  the  old  land  ice  cliffs  which  still  cover  the  more 
southern  portions  of  the  basalt  cliffs  of  the  Knoll.  These  ice  cliffs 
are  a  monument  to  what  wind  can  do ;  they  are  more  than  a  hun- 
dred feet  high  in  places  and  are  deeply  scooped  out  into  vast 
grooved  and  concave  hollows  as  though  by  a  colossal  gouge.  By 
following  along  the  foot  of  these  weather-worn  and  dirty-banded 
old  relics  of  glaciation  one  comes  by  a  series  of  slides  and  climbs 
and  scrambles  to  quite  recent  exposures  of  dark  rock  cliffs  which 
were  not  exposed  when  I  was  here  ten  years  ago. 

Then,  passing  along  the  foot  of  these,  one  comes  to  more  and 
loftier  ice  cliffs  and  more  and  still  loftier  rock  cliffs,  and  along 
the  very  foot  of  these,  in  among  rock  debris  and  snow  drifts  and 
frozen  thaw  pools,  and  boulders  which  have  fallen  into  the 
trough,  we  had  to  walk  and  climb  and  slide  and  crawl  in  the  direc- 
tion of  the  sea  ice  rookery.  [We  got  along  till  finally  we  climbed 
along  the  top  of  a  snow  ridge  with  a  razor-back  edge.  On  our 
right  was  a  drop  of  great  depth  with  crevasses  at  the  bottom: 
on  our  left  was  a  smaller  drop,  also  crevassed.  We  crawled 
along:  it  was  exciting  work  in  the  half  darkness.  At  the  end  was 
a  series  of  slopes  full  of  crevasses,  and  finally  we  got  right  in 
under  the  rock  on  to  moraine.]  At  one  spot  we  appeared  again 
to  have  come  to  an  impasse,  for  one  of  the  largest  and  most 
chaotic  pressure  ridges  had  actually  come  up  against  the  rock 


CAVE    IN   THE   BARRIER,   CAPE   CROZIER,  JAN.  4th,   191 


i9ii]  THROUGH    HOLE   AND    GULLY  25 

face  of  the  Crozier  cliffs,  but  we  found  a  man-hole  in  the  space 
between  the  ice  and  the  rock  which  was  big  enough,  and  only 
just  big  enough,  for  us  to  crawl  through  one  by  one.  [Bill  dis- 
appeared into  the  hole,  and  we  followed  and  managed  to  wriggle 
through,  working  ourselves  over  a  gully  the  other  side  by  jam- 
ming our  bodies  against  one  side  with  our  legs  against  the  cliff 
on  the  other.  In  another  place  we  got  up  another  hole  between 
two  jams  of  pressure,' rather  like  an  enlarged  rabbit  hole.  The 
place  was  strewn  with  fallen  ice  blocks  and  rocks,  and  if  one  fell 
on  us  we  should  have  finished,  also  if  the  Barrier  had  just  then 
chosen  to  give  a  squeeze.]  We  had  to  leave  the  sledge  here. 
Once  past  this  we  were  in  an  enclosed  snow  pit  with  an  almost  ver- 
tical wall  which  required  about  fifteen  steps  to  be  cut  to  get  out 
of  it.  From  here  we  had  again  a  series  of  drift  troughs  between 
the  rock  cliffs  and  the  pressure  ridges  until  at  last  we  got  out  on 
to  the  actual  ice  foot,  overhanging  the  sea  ice  by  a  small  over- 
hanging cliff  of  10  or  12  feet.  This  was  the  lowest  point  of  the 
ice  foot  and  there  was  no  snow  drift  running  down  from  it  on 
to  the  sea  ice  anywhere.  This  rather  suggests  that  even  this  bay 
ice  was  not  at  all  old  as  yet — possibly  not  even  a  month  old. 
Farther  on  round  the  foot  of  the  Crozier  rock  cliffs  the  ice  foot 
cliff  was  very  considerably  higher,  20  to  30  feet. 

The  light  was  rapidly  failing  when  we  at  last  reached  the  sea 
ice,  and  we  had  to  be  very  quick  in  doing  what  we  had  to  do  here. 
We  saw  there  was  no  seal  in  sight.  We  saw  also  that  there  were 
only  about  100  Emperor  penguins  instead  of  a  couple  of  thousand 
as  in  1902  and  1903.  They  were  all  standing  in  one  compact 
group  under  the  ice  cliffs  of  the  Barrier  a  few  hundred  yards  from 
where  we  had  emerged.  We  decided  to  get  three  penguin  skins 
with  their  blubber  and  a  few  eggs.  We  therefore  left  Cherry 
on  the  ice  foot  with  the  Alpine  rope  to  help  us  up  again  from  the 
sea  ice.  Bowers  and  I  jumped  down  and  went  off  to  the  Em- 
perors. We  saw  at  once  that  some  of  them  were  crouching  with 
eggs  on  their  feet,  as  they  tried  to  shuffle  away  with  them  with- 
out losing  their  hold.  As  we  hustled  them,  however,  a  good 
many  eggs  were  dropped  and  left  lying  on  the  ice,  or  were  picked 
up  again  by  the  unemployed  birds  that  saw  and  took  their  oppor- 
tunity to  seize  an  egg.  We  collected  six  eggs  and  killed  and 
skinned  three  birds,  and  went  back  to  the  ice  foot  where  Cherry 
was  waiting  to  help  us  up  with  the  rope.    We  passed  the  eggs  and 


26  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  Qult 

skins  up,  and  then  by  climbing  on  Bowers'  back  I  also  got  up; 
but  no  amount  of  combined  pulling  would  lift  Bowers,  as  the 
rope  only  cut  and  jammed  into  the  overhanging  cliff  of  ice.  He, 
however,  hunted  round  till  he  found  a  place  where  he  helped  him- 
self up  by  cutting  steps  while  we  hauled  at  the  same  time.  It 
took  a  little  time,  but  at  last  we  were  all  up,  and  at  once  started 
back  by  the  way  we  had  come  in  a  very  failing  light.  Bowers  had 
unfortunately  got  one  leg  into  a  crack  in  the  sea  ice,  and  his 
crampon,  finnesko  and  socks  became  frozen  into  a  solid  mass. 
Had  we  been  able  to  bring  the  sledge  along  to  this  point  the  ice 
foot  would  have  given  us  no  difficulty  at  all,  but  we  had  left  it 
behind  at  the  manhole.  [A  whole  procession  of  Emperors  came 
round  just  as  they  were  coming  back  from  the  floe.] 

The  small  number  of  Emperor  penguins  collected  here  at 
this  time  is  surprising.  There  were  not  more  than  ioo  birds,  and 
without  forcing  all  of  them  to  abandon  their  eggs  it  was  impos- 
sible to  guess  how  many  had  laid  or  were  incubating.  It  looked 
to  me  as  though  every  fourth  or  fifth  bird  had  an  egg,  but  this  is 
only  a  guess  and  may  be  quite  wrong,  though  I  am  certain  that 
there  were  more  birds  without  eggs  than  with  eggs.  Why  there 
should  be  so  few  birds  here  this  July,  when  there  were  so  many 
more  here  in  September  and  October  ten  years  ago,  is  difficult  to 
understand.  The  examination  of  the  three  eggs  we  have  brought 
back  with  us  may  throw  some  light  on  the  question.  They  may 
have  only  just  begun  to  lay,  and  these  may  have  been  the  earliest 
arrivals.    Others  may  yet  arrive  in  numbers  and  lay  this  year. 

Another  possible  explanation  is  that  the  ice  has  not  remained 
in,  and  that  the  rookery  has  been  dissipated  lately;  and  some 
support  is  lent  to  this  possibility  by  the  absence  of  all  snow  drifts 
on  to  the  sea  ice  from  the  ice  foot. 

I  see  no  way  of  deciding  this  question  except  by  another  visit 
to  the  rookery — either  this  year  in  September  or  October — or 
next  year,  preferably  in  August.  The  most  valuable  work  prob- 
ably could  be  done  in  August,  and  a  visit  would  be  much  facili- 
tated if  by  any  possibility  some  supply  of  oil  and  food  could  be 
left  at  the  Adelie  penguin  rookery  by  the  ship  during  the  coming 
summer.  But  I  am  not  blind  to  the  difficulties  there  may  be  in 
her  doing  this. 

A  very  interesting  fact  we  saw  at  the  rookery  this  time  was 
that  these  birds  are  so  anxious  to  incubate  an  egg  that  they  will 


i9"l  THE    PENGUIN'S   EGGS  27 

incubate  a  rounded  lump  of  ice  instead,  just  as  before  we  noticed 
them  incubate  a  dead  and  frozen  chick,  if  they  were  unable  to 
secure  a  living  one.  Both  Bowers  and  I,  in  the  failing  light,  mis- 
took these  rounded  dirty  lumps  of  ice  for  eggs,  and  picked  them 
up  as  eggs  before  we  realised  what  they  were.  One  of  them  I  dis- 
tinctly saw  dropped  by  a  bird,  and  it  was  roughly  egg-shaped  and 
of  the  right  size — hard,  dirty  and  semi-translucent  ice.  Another 
was,  as  I  thought,  a  deformed  egg,  and  as  such  I  picked  it  up. 
It  was  shaped  thus: 


Ice  '  nest-egg '  mistaken  for  a  deformed  egg. 

I  also  saw  one  of  the  birds  return  and  tuck  one  of  these  ice  '  nest- 
eggs  '  on  to  its  feet,  under  the  abdominal  flap.  I  had  a  real  egg 
in  my  hand,  so  I  put  it  down  on  the  ice  close  to  this  bird,  and 
the  bird  at  once  left  the  lump  of  ice  and  shuffled  to  the  real  egg 
and  pushed  it  in  under  its  flap  on  to  the  feet.  It  apparently  knew 
the  difference,  and  it  shows  how  strong  is  the  desire  to  brood  over 
something. 

The  three  birds  that  we  killed  and  skinned  were  very  thickly 
blubbered,  and  the  oil  we  got  from  them  burnt  very  well  indeed 
—  and  much  more  fiercely  than  the  seal  oil.  There  was  about 
%  inch  of  pure  fat  under  the  skin.  The  birds  were  in  excellent 
plumage.  Bowers  noticed  there  was  very  little  soiled  sea  ice 
where  they  were  standing,  which  also  supports  the  idea  of  a  very 
recent  arrival,  or  recent  freezing  of  the  bay  ice,  or  both. 

There  was  another  small  group  of  Emperors  wandering  by 
the  ice  foot  down  which  we  came,  but  none  of  them  had  eggs. 
We  saw  no  others. 

The  sea  was  frozen  over  as  far  as  the  horizon.  There  was  a 
little  evidence  of  pressure  in  cracks  of  the  sea  ice  in  the  bay.    Our 


28  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [July 

visit  was  a  very  hurried  one,  unfortunately,  owing  to  the  short- 
ness of  the  light  and  the  risk  of  getting  benighted  in  the  pressure 
ridges.  Subsequent  events  unfortunately  made  another  visit 
impossible. 

[We  legged  it  back  as  hard  as  we  could  go,  two  eggs  each  in 
our  fur  mits;  Birdie  with  two  skins  tied  on  behind,  and  myself 
with  one.  We  were  roped  up,  and  climbing  the  ridges  and  get- 
ting through  the  holes  was  very  difficult.  In  one  place  where 
there  was  a  steep  rubble  and  snow  slope  down  I  left  the  ice-axe 
half-way  up;  in  another  it  was  too  dark  to  see  our  former  ice- 
axe  footsteps,  and  I  could  see  nothing,  and  so  just  let  myself  go 
and  trusted  to  luck.  Bill  said  with  infinite  patience,  '  Cherry,  you 
must  learn  how  to  use  an  ice-axe.'  For  the  rest  of  the  trip  my 
windclothes  were  in  rags. 

We  found  the  sledge,  and  none  too  soon.  We  had  four  eggs 
left,  more  or  less  whole.  Both  mine  had  burst  in  my  mits :  the 
first  I  emptied  out,  the  second  I  left  in  my  mit  to  put  in  the 
cooker;  it  never  got  there,  but  on  the  return  journey  I  had  my 
mits  far  more  easily  thawed  out  than  Birdie's  (Bill  had  none), 
and  I  believe  the  grease  in  the  egg  did  them  good.  When  we  got 
into  the  hollows  under  the  ridge  where  we  had  to  cross,  it  was 
too  dark  to  do  anything  but  feel  our  way — which  we  did  over 
many  crevasses,  found  the  ridge  and  crept  over  it.  Higher  up 
we  could  see  more,  but  to  follow  our  tracks  soon  became  im- 
possible, and  we  plugged  straight  ahead  and  luckily  found  the 
slope  down  which  we  had  come. 

It  began  to  blow,  and  as  we  were  going  up  the  slope  to  the 
tent,  blew  up  to  4;  it  was  such  a  bad  light  that  we  missed  our 
way  entirely  and  got  right  up  above  our  knoll,  and  only  found  it 
after  a  good  deal  of  search;  meanwhile  the  weather  was  getting 
thick.] 

On  returning  to  the  stone  hut  we  flensed  one  of  the  penguin 
skins  and  cooked  our  supper  on  the  blubber  stove,  which  burnt 
furiously.  I  was  incapacitated  for  the  time  being  by  a  sputter  of 
the  hot  oil  catching  me  in  one  eye.  We  slept  in  the  hut  for  the 
first  time. 

[We  moved  into  the  igloo  and  began  a  wretched  night.  The 
wind  was  coming  in  all  round.  It  began  to  drift,  and  the  drift 
came  in  by  a  back  draught  under  the  door  and  covered  everything 
— bags,  socks,  and  all  our  gear.    Bill  started  up  the  blubber  stove 


i9ii]  NIGHT    IN    THE    IGLOO  29 

with  the  blubber  ready  in  it.  The  first  thing  it  did  was  to  spurt 
a  blob  of  boiling  blubber  into  his  eye :  for  the  rest  of  the  night 
he  lay,  quite  unable  to  stifle  his  groans,  in  obviously  very  great 
pain — and  he  told  us  afterwards  that  he  thought  his  eye  was 
gone.  We  managed  to  cook  a  meal  somehow,  and  Birdie  got  the 
stove  going  afterwards;  but  it  was  quite  useless  to  try  and  warm 
the  place.  The  wind  was  working  in  through  the  cracks  in  the 
snow  blocks  which  we  had  used  for  baulking  outside,  and  there 
was  no  possibility  of  stopping  these  cracks.  I  got  out  and  cut 
up  a  triangular  piece  outside  the  door  so  as  to  get  the  roof  cloth 
in  under  the  stones,  and  then  packed  it  down  as  best  I  could  with 
snow  and  so  blocked  most  of  the  drift  coming  in.  Bill  said  the 
next  evening,  '  At  any  rate  things  look  better  to-night — I  think 
we  reached  bedrock  last  night ' — as  a  matter  of  fact  we  hadn't 
by  some  long  way.  The  igloo  was  naturally  very  cold,  and  it 
blizzed  all  that  night,  blowing  6. 

The  greater  part  of  the  next  day  the  wind  had  fallen,  and  we 
got  all  the  drift  we  could  find  from  the  last  night — it  wasn't  much 
— and  packed  in  the  sides  of  the  igloo.] 

The  temperature  to-day  had  not  been  below  -  28-3°.  There 
had  been  a  southerly  wind  all  day  which  we  had  felt  at  all  the 
more  exposed  parts  of  the  way  down  to  the  sea  ice  and  in  the 
hollows  under  the  cliffs.  It  gradually  freshened  in  the  afternoon 
and  stratus  came  up  from  the  south.  At  8  P.M.  it  was  blowing 
force  6  from  the  S.S.W.,  but  the  sky  was  clear  to  the  N.E. 

Friday,  July  21,  191 1. — Our  first  night  in  the  hut  was  com- 
fortable enough,  though  the  breeze  freshened  during  the  night 
and  increased  to  force  8,  but  fell  to  5  in  the  morning.  The  only 
thing  we  did  not  quite  like  was  the  tendency  the  wind  had  to  lift 
the  canvas  roof  off  its  supporting  sledge — so  we  piled  large  slabs 
of  icy  snow  on  the  canvas  top  to  steady  it  down  and  prevent  this. 

The  temp,  ranged  from  —  20-4°  to  -  23-7°,  and  though  the 
wind  dropped  to  light  airs  the  weather  looked  thick  and  unsettled, 
with  stratus  moving  up  rapidly  from  the  south. 

We  spent  the  whole  of  our  daylight  in  packing  our  hut  with 
soft  snow,  until  not  a  crack  or  a  crevice  remained  visible  any- 
where on  the  outside. 

Then  we  brought  up  our  tent  from  the  hollow  below,  and 
pitched  it,  for  the  sake  of  convenience,  under  the  lee  end  of  our 
hut,  quite  close  to  the  door.     My  idea  in  doing  this  was  to  get 


3o  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [July 

more  efficient  heat  for  drying  socks  and  other  gear  than  was  pos- 
sible in  the  hut.  The  large  open  canvas  roof  of  the  hut  allowed 
all  the  heat  to  escape  at  once,  but  in  the  double  tent  the  intense 
heat  of  the  blubber  stove  dried  anything  hung  in  the  apex  in  a 
very  short  time. 

We  cooked  our  supper  in  the  tent,  nearly  stifling  ourselves 
with  the  smoke,  but  the  heating  effect  was  immense.  [The  blub- 
ber stove  heated  the  oil  so  much  that  we  expected  every  minute 
that  the  whole  would  flare  up.  It  took  a  lot  of  primus  to  start  it. 
We  took  our  finnesko  in  to  try  and  dry  them  there  with  the  rest 
of  the  gear  when  we  left.  Bill  and  I  however  took  our  private 
bags  back  into  the  igloo.  After  dinner  we  flensed  one  of  the  Em- 
peror skins  as  hard  as  we  could  and  boiled  down  the  blubber  in 
the  inner  cooker — very  good  stuff — nearly  filling  the  stove  up.] 
We  then  moved  to  the  hut  to  sleep,  believing  it  to  be  as  safe 
and  as  comfortable  as  it  could  be  made  until  we  got  some  cover- 
ing for  the  roof,  such  as  sealskins.  When  we  turned  in  there  was 
practically  no  wind  at  all,  but  the  sky  was  overcast.  When  I 
turned  out  three  or  four  hours  later  there  was  still  no  wind; 
but  it  came  on  to  blow  suddenly  soon  after  3  A.M.,  and  blew 
heavily  from  the  S.  with  little  drift  at  first. 

Saturday,  July  22,  191 1. — By  6.30  A.M.  it  was  blowing  force 
9  to  10  from  the  S.S.W.,  with  heavy  drift  and  wind  in  strong 
gusts,  and  when  Bowers  turned  out  he  found  the  tent  had  disap- 
peared, legs,  lining,  cover  and  all,  leaving  the  cooker  and  all  the 
gear  we  had  left  in  it  over  night  on  the  ground.  The  drift  was 
now  very  thick  and  there  was  nothing  to  be  done  but  to  collect 
the  gear,  which  Bowers  and  Cherry  did  and  passed  it  in  to  me  in 
the  hut.  Very  little  of  the  gear  was  lost.  All  our  finnesko  were 
there  and  were  recovered,  as  well  as  a  quantity  of  smaller  gear. 
The  only  losses  were  the  two  flat  parts  of  the  cooker,  which  we 
never  found  afterwards. 

[We  were  woken  up  by  Birdie  shouting  through  the  door, 
*  Bill,  Bill,  the  tent  has  gone.'  I  got  out,  helped  Birdie,  and 
passed  the  gear  which  had  been  in  the  tent  into  the  igloo,  where 
Bill  took  it.  It  was  impossible  to  stand  against  the  wind:  Birdie 
was  blown  right  over;  each  time  we  got  something  it  was  a  fight 
to  get  the  three  or  four  yards  to  the  igloo  door:  if  the  wind  had 
started  us  down  the  slope  nothing  would  have  stopped  us.  The 
place  where  the  tent  had  been  was  littered  with  gear.    When  we 


I 


i9ii]  THE    BLIZZARD  31 

came  to  reckon  up  afterwards  we  had  everything  except  the  bot- 
tom piece  of  the  cooker  and  the  top  of  the  outer  cooker.  The 
former  was  left  on  the  top  of  the  cooker,  the  latter  was  in  its 
groove.  We  never  regained  them.  The  most  wonderful  thing 
of  all  was  that  our  finnesko  were  lying  where  they  were  left, 
which  happened  to  be  on  the  ground  in  the  part  of  the  tent 
which  was  under  the  lee  of  the  igloo.  Also  Birdie's  private  bag 
was  there,  and  a  tin  of  sweets. 

Birdie  brought  two  tins  of  sweets  away  with  him  as  a  lux- 
ury, for  we  had  no  sugar  in  our  ration :  one  we  had  on  our  arrival 
at  the  Knoll ;  this  was  the  second,  of  which  we  knew  nothing,  and 
which  was  for  Bill's  birthday,  the  next  day.  We  started  eating 
them  on  Saturday,  however,  and  the  tin  came  in  useful  to  Bill 
afterwards. 

The  roar  of  the  wind  in  the  igloo  sounded  just  like  the 
rush  of  an  express  train  through  a  tunnel.  As  it  topped  the  rise 
it  sucked  our  roof  cloth  upwards,  letting  it  down  with  tremendous 
bangs.  We  could  only  talk  in  shouts,  and  began  to  get  seriously 
alarmed  about  our  roof.] 

Inside  the  hut  we  were  now  being  buried  by  fine  snow  drift, 
which  was  coming  through  the  cracks  of  the  walls  in  fine  spouts, 
especially  through  the  weather  wall  and  over  the  door  in  the  lee 
wall.  We  tried  to  plug  the  inlets  with  socks,  but  as  fast  as  we 
closed  one  the  drift  came  in  by  another,  and  heaps  of  soft  drift 
gradually  piled  up  to  6  and  8  inches  on  everything.  It  seems  that 
the  strong  wind  blowing  over  the  roof  of  the  hut  sucked  it 
upwards  and  tried  hard  to  lift  it  off,  producing  so  much  suction 
into  the  interior  of  the  hut  that  the  fine  drift  came  in  everywhere 
notwithstanding  our  day  spent  in  packing  every  crack  and  cranny. 
When  there  was  no  more  snow  drift  to  come  in,  fine  black  mo- 
raine dust  came  in  and  blackened  everything  like  coal  dust.  The 
canvas  roof,  upon  which  we  had  put  heavy  slabs  of  icy  snow,  was 
lifted  clean  off  and  was  stretched  upwards  and  outwards  like  a 
tight  dome  and  as  taut  as  a  drum.  There  was  no  chafe  or  fric- 
tion anywhere  except  along  the  lee  and  wall  top,  and  there  we 
plugged  every  space  between  the  canvas  and  the  wall  stones  with 
pyjama  jackets,  fur  mits,  socks,  &c.  So  long  as  the  ice  slabs  re- 
mained on  the  top,  moreover,  there  was  no  flapping  and  every- 
thing seemed  fairly  secure.  Our  only  fear  was  that  to  allow  of 
the  admission  of  so  much  drift  and  dust  through  the  weather  wall 


32  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [July 

there  must  have  been  openings  in  our  packing — and  we  thought 
it  possible  that  by  degrees  the  upward  tension  might  draw  the 
canvas  roof  out.  We  could  not  be  quite  certain  that  the  ice-slabs 
were  not  being  eaten  away.  This  however  proved  not  to  be  our 
danger,  the  slabs  remained  sound  to  the  end  and  the  canvas  buried 
in  the  walls  did  not  draw  anywhere  at  all,  even  for  an  inch. 

The  storm  continued  unabated  all  day,  and  we  decided  to 
cook  a  meal  on  the  blubber  stove.  We  felt  a  great  satisfaction  in 
having  three  penguin  skins  to  cook  with  for  some  days,  so  that 
we  could  last  out  any  length  of  blizzard  without  coming  to  our 
last  can  of  oil. 

We  got  the  blubber  stove  going  once  or  twice,  but  it  insisted 
on  suddenly  going  out  for  no  apparent  reason.  And  before  we 
had  boiled  any  water,  in  trying  to  restart  it  with  the  spirit  lamp 
provided  for  the  purpose,  the  feed-pipe  suddenly  dropped  off,  un- 
soldered, rendering  the  whole  stove  useless.  [That  was  the  end 
of  the  stove;  very  lucky  it  ended  when  it  did,  for  it  was  obviously 
a  most  dangerous  thing.]  We  therefore  poured  the  melted  oil 
into  tins  and  lamps  for  the  journey  home  in  case  our  candles  ran 
out,  and  for  drying  or  thawing  out  socks  and  mits. 

We  then  considered  matters  in  the  light  of  a  shortage  of  oil 
and  absence  of  tent.  We  decided  first  to  go  as  long  as  we  could 
without  a  hot  meal  so  long  as  the  blizzard  kept  us  inactive.  We 
also  saw  that  we  could  not  afford  to  start  our  last  can  of  oil  with 
the  vague  chance  of  getting  a  seal  and  improvising  a  blubber 
stove  and  so  staying  on  here.  We  still  had  a  fill  of  oil  in  our 
fifth  can.  As  for  the  tent,  we  believed  we  should  at  any  rate  find 
part  of  it,  if  only  the  legs,  and  we  saw  no  impossibility  in  im- 
provising a  tent  cover  of  some  sort  from  the  canvas  roof  of  our 
hut,  even  if  the  tent  and  lining  were  both  lost. 

Lying  in  our  bags  in  the  hut  we  were  very  wet,  and  got  wetter 
from  the  fine  drift  every  time  we  moved  in  or  out  of  them.  Every- 
thing was  buried  in  a  pile  of  soft,  fine  drift.  But  we  were  not 
cold.  We  finished  our  breakfast  on  the  primus  when  the  blubber 
stove  gave  out,  and  this  was  our  last  meal  for  a  good  many  hours 
as  it  happened.  [At  intervals  during  the  next  24  hours  Birdie, 
who  was  absolutely  magnificent,  was  up  and  about,  stopping  up 
every  crevice  where  wind  or  drift  was  working  in  with  socks,  mits, 
and  anything  handy.  A  drift  hole  was  especially  bad  in  the 
middle  of  the  windward  wall,  drifting  us  all  up  lightly,  and  put- 


19"]  THE    ROOF   GOES  33 

ting  a  lot  in  Birdie's  corner.  The  only  possible  thing  to  do  for  the 
roof  would  have  been  lashings  over  it  outside,  and  in  that  wind 
that  was  out  of  the  question.  Our  position,  with  the  tent  gone, 
was  bad.] 

,  We  could  not  understand  quite  how  the  tent  had  been  blown 
away,  for  we  had  taken  extra  precautions  in  setting  it,  and  had 
got  as  nearly  perfect  a  spread  as  possible.  Moreover,  it  was  in 
the  lee  of  the  hut,  and  we  had  buried  the  valance  not  only  with 
heaps  of  snow,  but  with  4  or  5  rocks  on  the  snow  in  each  bay, 
and  to  make  things  quite  secure,  the  last  thing  before  turning  in 
Bowers  and  I  had  hoisted  the  heavy  canvas  tank,  full  of  gear, 
almost  more  than  one  could  lift  alone,  on  to  the  weather  skirt. 

We  could  only  think  that  the  same  sucking  action  which  lifted 
our  roof  also  lifted  the  tent,  or  that  it  was  twisted  off  its  legs  by 
getting  caught  sideways  by  a  squall  which  came  partly  round  the 
end  of  the  hut  corner.  Anyhow,  as  it  was  gone,  we  decided  to 
take  the  earliest  opportunity  of  any  light  to  go  and  look  for  it. 

Other  things  happened  before  this  opportunity  arrived. 

Sunday,  July  23,  191 1. — Bowers  estimated  the  wind  at  force 
1 1  and  noted  it  as  blowing  with  almost  continuous  storm  force, 
with  very  slight  lulls  followed  by  squalls  of  great  violence. 

About  noon  the  canvas  roof  of  the  hut  was  carried  away,  and 
the  storm  continued  unabated  all  day,  but  latterly  without  much 
drift. 

It  happened  that  this  was  my  birthday — and  we  spent  it  lying 
in  our  bags  without  a  roof  or  a  meal,  wishing  the  wind  would 
drop,  while  the  snow  drifted  over  us. 

The  roof  went  as  follows.  We  saw,  as  soon  as  light  showed 
through  the  canvas  in  the  early  morning,  that  the  snow  blocks 
on  the  top  had  all  been  blown  off,  and  that  the  upward  strain  was 
now  as  bad  as  ever,  with  a  greater  tendency  to  flap  at  the  lee 
end  wall.  And  where  the  canvas  was  fixed  in  over  the  door  it 
began  to  work  on  the  heavy  stones  which  held  it  down,  jerking 
and  shaking  them  so  that  it  threatened  to  throw  them  down. 
Bowers  was  trying  all  he  could  to  jam  them  tight  with  pyjama 
jackets  and  bamboos,  and  in  this  I  was  helping  him  when  the 
canvas  suddenly  ripped,  and  in  a  moment  I  saw  about  six  rents 
all  along  the  lee  wail  top,  and  in  another  moment  we  were  under 
the  open  sky  with  the  greater  part  of  the  roof  flapped  to  shreds. 
The  noise  was  terrific,  and  rocks  began  to  tumble  in  off  the  walls 

VOL.  11— 3 


34  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [July 

on  to  Bowers  and  Cherry,  happily  without  hurting  them,  and  in 
a  smother  of  drift  Bowers  and  I  bolted  into  our  bags,  and  in  them 
the  three  of  us  lay  listening  to  the  flap  of  the  ragged  ends  of  can- 
vas over  our  heads,  which  sounded  like  a  volley  of  pistol  shots 
going  on  for  hour  after  hour.  As  we  lay  there  I  think  we  were 
all  revolving  plans  for  making  a  tent  now  to  get  back  to  Hut 
Point  with,  out  of  the  floorcloth  on  which  we  lay — the  only 
piece  of  canvas  now  left  us,  except  for  the  pieces  still  firmly  em- 
bedded in  the  hut  walls.  We  were  all  warm  enough,  though  wet, 
as  we  had  carried  a  great  deal  of  snow  into  the  bags  with  us,  and 
every  time  we  looked  out  more  drift  which  was  accumulating 
over  us  would  fall  in.  I  hoped  myself  that  this  would  not  prove 
to  be  one  of  the  five  or  eight-day  blizzards  which  we  had  experi- 
enced at  Cape  Crozier  in  days  gone  by. 

Monday,  July  24,  191 1. — The  storm  continued  unabated 
until  midnight,  and  then  dropped  to  force  9  with  squalls  inter- 
spersed by  short  lulls.  At  6.30  A.M.  the  wind  had  dropped  to 
force  2.  At  10  a.m.  it  was  about  force  3,  and  we  awaited  the 
moment  when  there  would  be  light  enough  for  us  to  look  for  our 
tent.  Meanwhile  Bowers  suggested  an  alfresco  meal  under  the 
floorcloth  as  we  sat  in  our  bags.  We  lit  the  primus  and  got  the 
cooker  going  and  had  a  good  hot  meal,  the  first  for  48  hours, 
the  tent  floorcloth  resting  on  our  heads. 

As  it  was  still  dark  when  we  had  finished  we  lay  in  our  bags 
again  for  a  bit.  Daylight  appeared,  and  we  at  once  turned  out, 
and  it  was  by  no  means  reassuring  to  find  that  the  weather  in  the 
south  still  looked  as  bad  and  thick  as  it  possibly  could.  We  there- 
fore lost  no  time  at  all  in  getting  away  down  wind  to  look  for  the 
tent.  Everywhere  we  found  shreds  of  green  canvas  roof  the  size 
of  a  pocket-handkerchief,  but  not  a  sign  of  the  tent,  until  a  loud 
shout  from  Bowers,  who  had  gone  more  east  to  the  top  of  a  ridge 
than  Cherry  and  I,  told  us  he  had  seen  it.  He  hurried  down,  and 
slid  about  a  hundred  yards  down  a  hard  snow  slope  sitting  in  his 
haste,  and  there  we  joined  him  where  he  had  found  the  whole  tent 
hardly  damaged  at  all,  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  where  we  had 
pitched  it.  One  of  the  poles  had  been  twisted  right  out  of  the 
cap,  and  the  lower  stops  of  the  tent  lining  had  all  carried  away 
more  or  less,  but  the  tent  itself  was  intact  and  untorn. 

We  brought  it  back,  pitched  it  in  the  old  spot  in  the  snow 
hollow  below  our  hut,  and  then  brought  down  our  bags  and 


EMPEROR    PENGUINS'    EGGS    FROM    CAPE    CROZIER 


FROST-SMOKE 


i9ii]  CHERRY-GARRARD'S    ACCOUNT  35 

cooker  and  all  essential  gear,  momentarily  expecting  the  weather 
to  break  on  us  again.  It  looked  as  thick  as  could  be  and  close  at 
hand  in  the  south. 

We  discussed  the  position,  and  came  to  the  conclusion  that  as 
our  oil  had  now  run  down  to  one  can  only,  and  as  we  couldn't 
afford  to  spend  time  trying  tc  fix  up  an  improvised  blubber  stove 
in  a  roofless  hut,  we  ought  to  return  to  Cape  Evans. 

It  was  disappointing  to  have  seen  so  very  little  of  the  Em- 
peror penguins,  but  it  seemed  to  me  unavoidable,  and  that  we  had 
attempted  too  difficult  an  undertaking  without  light  in  the 
winter. 

I  had  also  some  doubt  as  to  whether  our  bags  were  not 
already  in  such  a  state  as  might  make  them  quite  unusable  should 
we  meet  with  really  low  temperatures  again  in  our  journey  home. 

I  therefore  decided  to  start  for  Hut  Point  the  next  day.  To 
this  end  we  sorted  out  all  our  gear,  and  made  a  depot  in  a  corner 
of  the  stone  hut  of  all  that  we  could  usefully  leave  there  for  use 
on  a  future  occasion.  This  depot  I  fixed  up  finally  with  Cherry 
the  next  morning  while  Bowers  packed  up  the  sledge  at  our  tent. 
We  put  rocks  on  our  depot  and  the  nine-foot  sledge,  and  the 
pick,  with  a  matchbox  containing  a  note  tied  to  the  handle,  where 
it  could  not  be  missed.  We  also  fixed  up  bamboos  round  the 
walls  to  attract  attention  to  the  spot. 

[Mr.  Cherry-Garrard's  account  of  this  episode  must  be 
quoted  in  full : 

All  that  day  and  night  it  blew  11,  with  absolutely  no  real 
lull ;  what  the  wind  was  in  the  gusts  we  shall  never  know,  it  was 
something  appalling.  We  quite  lost  count  of  time,  but  Sunday 
morning  it  was  just  the  same.    This  was  Bill's  birthday. 

About  now  we  began  to  realise  that  the  roof  must  go.  The 
stones  holding  the  door  end  (leeward)  of  the  roof  began  to 
work:  drift  was  coming  in,  and  the  place  where  I  had  slit  up  the 
roof  to  fold  it  in  over  the  door  was  obviously  weak:  the  food- 
bags  did  something  to  remedy  this.  Bill  told  us  he  thought  that 
to  turn  over,  flaps  under,  would  give  us  our  best  chance.  We 
could  do  nothing,  and  lay  in  our  bags  until  Birdie  told  us  that  the 
roof  was  flapping  more :  he  was  out  of  his  bag  trying  to  hold  the 
rocks  firm,  and  I  and  Bill  were  sitting  up  in  ours  pressing  against 
them  with  a  bamboo.  Suddenly  the  roof  went — first,  I  believe, 
over  the  door,  splitting  into  seven  or  eight  strips  along  the  lee- 


36  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [July 

ward  end,  and  then  ripping  into  hundreds  of  pieces  in  about  half 
a  minute. 

We  got  into  our  bags  as  best  we  could.  I  remember  trying 
to  get  Bill  into  his,  as  he  was  farther  out  than  I  was ;  he  wouldn't 
let  me — '  Please  get  into  your  bag,  Cherry.'  Both  Birdie's  hands 
went  in  getting  back  to  his.  We  turned  our  bags  over,  flaps 
under,  as  much  as  possible,  and  were  gradually  drifted  up. 

It  was  a  most  appalling  position.  I  knew  that  Peary  had 
once  come  through  a  blizzard  lying  in  the  open  in  his  bag  in  the 
summer.  I  had  no  idea  that  human  beings  could  do  so  in  winter 
in  the  state  in  which  we  were  already.  I  wondered  whether  it  was 
really  worth  trying  to  keep  warm.  I  confess  that  I  considered 
that  we  were  now  come  to  the  end.  If  we  got  out  of  the  blizzard 
and  had,  as  we  decided,  to  try  and  get  back  by  digging  ourselves 
into  the  snow  for  the  night,  I  meant  to  ask  Bill  to  let  us  have 
enough  morphia  to  deaden  the  pain  when,  as  I  think  still  it  must 
have  come,  the  cold  became  too  much  to  live.  With  a  steep  icy 
slope  below  us,  ending  in  an  ice-cliff  which  itself  led  into  the  pres- 
sure, I  don't  know  whether  any  of  us  had  much  hope  of  finding 
the  tent — though  afterwards  as  the  wind  went  down  we  said 
we  had.    Without  the  tent  I  think  we  must  have  died. 

I  suppose  at  times  all  through  this  blizzard  we  must  have 
dozed — I  remember  waking  once  after  this  to  hear  Bill  singing 
hymns — every  now  and  then  I  could  hear  a  little,  and  Bill  says 
Birdie  was  doing  the  same :  I  chimed  in  a  bit,  but  not  very  much. 
Early  Monday  morning  there  were  decided  lulls  in  the  wind,  and 
the  blizzard  had  practically  blown  itself  out.  Before  daylight, 
while  it  was  still  blowing,  we  turned  out  and  went  down  the  slope 
to  try  and  find  the  tent.  We  could  see  nothing,  and  were  forced 
to  return.  It  was  now  48  hours  since  we  had  had  a  meal,  and 
we  managed  about  the  weirdest  meal  ever  eaten  N.  or  South. 
We  got  the  floorcloth  under  the  heads  of  our  bags,  then  got  into 
our  bags  and  drew  the  floorcloth  over  our  heads  and  got  the 
primus  going  in  this  shelter,  and  the  cooker  held  by  hand  over  the 
primus.  In  time  we  got  both  tea  and  pemmican — the  blubber  left 
in  the  cooker  burnt  and  gave  the  tea  a  burnt  taste — none  of  us 
will  ever  forget  that  meal.  I  enjoyed  it  as  much  as  such  a  meal 
ever  could  be  enjoyed,  and  that  burnt  taste  will  always  bring  back 
that  memory. 

A  little  glow  of  light  began  to  come  up  and  we  turned  out  to 


i9ii]  LITTLE    GEAR    LOST  37 

have  a  further  search  for  the  tent.  Birdie  went  off  before  Bill 
and  me.  I  dragged  my  eiderdown  out  on  my  feet  all  sopping  wet ; 
it  was  impossible  to  get  it  back,  and  I  let  it  freeze — it  was  soon 
just  like  a  rock.  I  followed  Bill  down  the  slope  when  we  heard 
a  shout  on  our  right  and  made  for  it  with  hope.  We  got  on  a 
slope,  slipped,  and  went  sliding  down,  quite  unable  to  stop  our- 
selves, and  came  to  Birdie  with  the  tent,  outer  lining  still  on  the 
bamboos.  We  were  so  thankful  we  said  nothing.  The  tent  was 
over  the  ridge  to  the  N.E.  of  the  igloo  at  the  bottom  of  the  steep 
slope  about  half  of  a  mile  away.  I  believe  that  it  blew  away  be- 
cause part  of  it  was  in  the  wind,  and  part  in  the  lee  of  the  igloo. 

It  looked  as  if  it  would  start  blowing  again  at  any  moment 
and  was  getting  thick,  and  we  hurried  back  with  the  tent,  slither- 
ing up  and  down,  and  pitched  it  where  we  had  pitched  it  on  our  ar- 
rival. Never  was  tent  so  firmly  dug  in,  by  Bill,  while  Birdie  and 
I  got  our  gear,  such  as  we  could  find,  down  from  the  igloo. 
Luckily  the  wind  from  the  S.  and  the  back-draught  from  the  N. 
had  blown  everything  inwards  when  the  roof  went,  and  we  man- 
aged to  find  or  dig  out  almost  everything  except  Bill's  fur  mits. 
These  were  packed  into  a  hole  in  rocks  to  prevent  drift  coming 
in.  We  had  a  meal  in  the  tent;  searched  for  the  parts  of  the 
cooker  down  the  slope,  but  only  found  a  track  of  small  bits  of 
roof  cloth.  We  were  very  weak.  We  packed  the  tank  ready  for 
a  start  back  in  the  morning  and  turned  in,  utterly  worn  out.  It 
was  only  —  120  that  night,  but  my  left  big  toe  was  frostbitten  in 
my  bag,  which  I  was  trying  to  use  without  an  eiderdown  lining.] 

Tuesday,  July  25,  191 1. — There  was  a  stiff  cold  breeze  of 
force  4  and  temp.  -  15*3°  which  came  down  our  slope  from 
S.S.W.,  with  thick  weather  and  heavy  clouds  moving  up  from  the 
Barrier  in  the  south.  We  quickly  finished  all  our  final  arrange- 
ments and  got  away  down  into  the  gut  by  the  pressure  ridges, 
where  we  found  ourselves  pulling  against  a  gale  rapidly  freshen- 
ing from  the  S.W.  [My  job,  writes  Cherry-Garrard,  was  to  bal- 
ance the  sledge  behind:  I  was  so  utterly  done  I  don't  believe  I 
could  have  pulled  effectively.  Birdie  was  much  the  strongest  of 
us.  The  strain  and  want  of  sleep  was  getting  me  in  the  neck, 
and  Bill  looked  very  bad.] 

This  wind  became  so  strong  after  we  had  gone  a  mile  that  we 
camped,  much  against  our  inclinations,  in  amongst  ice-hard,  wind- 
swept sastrugi  [our  hands  going  one  after  the  other],  and  the 


3 8  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [July 

gale  continued  and  freshened  to  force  9  and  lasted  all  night. 
Bowers  here  determined  that  the  tent  should  not  go  off  alone, 
and  arranged  a  line  by  which  he  fastened  the  cap  of  the  tent  to 
himself  as  he  lay  in  his  bag.  The  temp,  during  the  day  was  from 
-15-3°  to  -  1 70,  and  the  whole  sky  was  overcast. 

Bowers  to-day  turned  his  bag  to  hair  outside.  Cherry  had 
a  sound  sleep  in  his  bag,  which  he  badly  wanted. 

[I,  writes  C.-G.,  was  feeling  as  if  I  should  crack,  and  accepted 
Birdie's  eiderdown,  which  he  had  not  used  and  had  for  many 
days  been  asking  me  to  use.  It  was  wonderfully  self-sacrificing 
of  him,  more  than  I  can  write.  I  felt  a  brute  to  take  it,  but  I  was 
getting  useless,  unless  I  got.  some  sleep,  which  my  big  bag  would 
not  allow.  The  day  we  got  down  to  the  Emperors  I  felt  so  done 
that  I  did  not  much  care  whether  I  went  down  a  crevasse  or  not. 
We  had  gone  through  a  great  deal  since  then.  Bill  and  Birdie 
kept  on  assuring  me  that  I  was  doing  more  than  my  share  of  the 
work,  but  I  think  that  I  was  getting  more  and  more  weak.  Birdie 
kept  wonderfully  strong:  he  slept  most  of  the  night;  the  diffi- 
culty was  for  him  to  get  into  his  bag  without  going  to  sleep.  He 
kept  the  meteorological  log  untiringly,  but  some  of  these  nights 
he  had  to  give  it  up  for  the  time  because  he  could  not  keep  awake. 
He  used  to  fall  asleep  with  his  pannikin  in  his  hand  and  let  it  fall, 
and  once  he  had  the  lighted  primus. 

Bill's  bag  was  getting  hopeless :  it  was  really  too  small  for  an 
eiderdown  and  was  splitting  all  over  the  place — great  long  holes. 
He  never  consciously  slept  for  nights — he  did  sleep  a  bit,  for  we 
heard  him.  Except  for  this  night  and  the  next,  when  Birdie's 
eiderdown  was  fairly  dry,  I  never  consciously  slept;  except  that 
I  used  to  wake  for  five  or  six  nights  running  with  the  same  night- 
mare— that  we  were  drifted  up  and  that  Bill  and  Birdie  were 
passing  the  gear  into  my  bag,  cutting  it  open  to  do  so — or  some 
other  variation,  I  did  not  know  that  I  had  been  asleep  at  all.] 

All  our  bags  were  by  this  time  so  saturated  with  water  that 
they  froze  too  stiff  to  bend  with  safety,  so  from  now  onwards  to 
Cape  Evans  we  never  rolled  them  up,  but  packed  them  one  on  the 
other  full  length,  like  coffins,  on  the  sledge.  Even  so,  they  were 
breaking  or  broken  in  several  places  in  the  efforts  we  made  to 
get  into  them  in  the  evenings.  We  always  took  the  precaution  to 
stow  our  personal  kit  bags  and  sleeping  fur  boots  and  socks  in 
such  parts  as  would  give  us  an  entry  to  start  getting  in  by.    They 


i9ii]  PRESSURES   AND    CREVASSES  39 

were  all  very  uncomfortable  and  our  whole  journey  home  was 
done  on  a  very  limited  allowance  of  conscious  sleep,  while  one  or 
other  of  the  party  almost  invariably  dozed  off  and  had  a  sleep 
over  the  cooker  in  the  comparative  comfort  of  sitting  on  a  bag 
instead  of  lying  inside  it. 

Wednesday,  July  26,  191 1. — We  got  in  only  half  a  day's 
march,  as  the  wind  continued  until  nearly  all  the  daylight  had 
gone.  Leaving  at  about  2  p.m.,  we  made  4j^  miles  in  3^  hours, 
and  once  more  found  ourselves  on  a  very  suspicious  surface  in 
the  darkness,  where  we  several  times  stepped  into  rotten  lidded 
crevasses  in  smooth,  windswept  ice.  We  continued,  however, 
feeling  our  way  along  by  keeping  always  off  hard  ice-slopes  and 
on  the  crustier  deeper  snow  which  characterises  the  hollows  of 
the  pressure  ridges,  which  I  believed  we  had  once  more  fouled  in 
the  dark.  We  had  no  light,  and  no  landmarks  to  guide  us,  ex- 
cept vague  and  indistinct  silhouetted  slopes  ahead,  which  were 
always  altering  and  whose  distance  and  character  it  was  impos- 
sible to  judge.  We  never  knew  whether  we  were  approaching  a 
steep  slope  at  close  quarters  or  a  long  slope  of  Terror,  miles 
away,  and  eventually  we  travelled  on  by  the  ear,  and  by  the 
feel  of  the  snow  under  our  feet,  for  both  the  sound  and  the  touch 
told  one  much  of  the  chances  of  crevasses  or  of  safe  going.  We 
continued  thus  in  the  dark  in  the  hope  that  we  were  at  any  rate 
in  the  right  direction. 

The  sky  cleared  when  the  wind  fell,  and  the  temperature 
dropped  from  -21-5°  at  11  A.M.  to  -450  at  9  P.M.  We  then 
made  our  night  camp  amongst  the  pressure  ridges  off  the  Terror 
moraine,  on  snow  that  felt  soft  and  deep  enough  to  be  safe  in 
what  we  believed  to  be  one  of  the  hollows  [and  when  we  camped 
after  getting  into  a  bunch  of  crevasses  and  being  completely  lost, 
'  At  any  rate,'  Bill  said,  as  we  camped  that  night,  '  I  think  we  are 
well  clear  of  the  pressure.'  There  were  pressure  pops  all  night, 
just  as  though  someone  was  whacking  an  empty  tank.] 

Thursday,  July  27,  191 1. — We  got  away  with  the  coming  of 
daylight  and  found  that  our  suspicions  overnight  had  been  true. 
We  were  right  in  amongst  the  larger  pressure  ridges  and  had 
come  for  a  considerable  distance  between  two  of  them  without 
actually  crossing  any  but  very  insignificant  ones.  Ahead  of  us 
was  a  safe  and  clear  road  to  the  open  Barrier  to  the  south,  but 
we  wanted  to  go  to  the  S.W.     And  as  the  pressure  ridges  were 


4o  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [July 

invariably  crevassed  on  the  summits  we  hoped  that  by  continu- 
ing along  this  valley  we  might  find  some  low  spot  where  we  could 
cross  the  ridge  on  our  right,  and  again  get  on  the  safer  land  ice. 
We  however  found  no  such  dip,  and  after  some  time  decided  we 
must  cross  the  ridge  on  our  right  [an  enormous  pressure  ridge, 
blotting  out  the  moraine  and  half  Terror,  rising  like  a  great 
hill].  In  doing  so  we  managed  to  negotiate  several  rottenly 
bridged  narrow  crevasses  [both  Bill  and  I  putting  a  leg  down] 
and  one  broad  one  which  we  only  discovered  when  we  were  all 
on  it  with  the  sledge,  and  then  Bowers  dropped  suddenly  into  one 
and  hung  up  in  his  harness  out  of  sight  and  out  of  reach  from  the 
surface.  It  was  a  crevasse  I  had  just  put  my  foot  in,  but  Bowers 
went  in  even  as  I  shouted  a  warning.  We  were  too  close  to  one 
another  in  our  harness  and  the  sledge  followed  us  and  bridged 
the  crevasse.  I  had  hold  of  Bowers'  harness,  while  Cherry 
lowered  a  bowline  on  the  end  of  the  Alpine  rope  into  which 
Bowers  got  his  foot,  and  then  by  alternately  hauling  on  one  and 
the  other  we  got  him  up  again.  After  this,  for  the  next  few  days 
while  we  were  on  doubtful  ground,  I  went  ahead  with  12  or  15 
feet  of  rope  on  my  trace,  and  so  was  able  to  give  good  warning 
and  to  change  the  course  easily  if  I  found  we  were  getting  on  to 
bad  ground. 

[C.-G.  gives  a  fuller  account: 

Just  over  the  top  Birdie  went  right  down  a  crevasse,  which 
was  about  wide  enough  to  take  him — he  went  down  slowly,  his 
head  disappearing  quite  slowly — and  he  went  down  till  his  head 
was  four  feet  below  the  surface,  a  little  of  his  harness  catching 
up  on  something.  Bill  went  for  his  harness,  I  went  for  the  bow 
of  the  sledge.  Bill  told  me  to  get  the  Alpine  rope  and  Birdie 
directed  from  below  what  we  could  do :  we  could  not  possibly 
haul  him  up  as  he  was,  for  the  sides  of  the  crevasse  were  soft 
and  he  could  not  help  himself.  I  put  a  bowline  on  the  Alpine 
rope,  and  lying  down  over  him  gave  him  the  loop,  which  he  got 
under  his  leg.  We  then  pulled  him  up  inch  by  inch :  first  by  draw- 
ing up  his  leg  he  could  give  one  some  slack,  then  raising  himself 
on  his  leg  he  could  give  Bill  some  slack  on  the  harness,  and  so  we 
gradually  got  him  up.  It  was  a  near  go  for  Birdie:  the  crevasse 
was  probably  about  100  feet  deep,  and  did  not  narrow  as  it  went 
down. 

It  was  a  wonderful  piece  of  presence  of  mind  that  Birdie  in 


i9ii]  CHANGE    OF   LUCK  41 

such  a  position  could  direct  us  how  to  get  him  up — by  a  way 
which,  as  far  as  we  know,  he  invented  on  the  spur  of  the  moment, 
a  way  which  we  have  used  since  on  the  Beardmore. 

In  front  of  us  we  could  see  another  ridge,  and  we  did  not 
know  how  many  lay  beyond  that.  Things  looked  pretty  bad. 
Bill  took  a  long  lead  on  the  Alpine  rope  and  we  got  down  our 
present  difficulty  all  right.  From  this  moment  our  luck  changed 
and  everything  went  for  us  to  the  end.  This  method  of  the  leader 
being  on  a  long  trace  in  front  we  all  agreed  to  be  very  useful. 
When  we  went  out  on  the  sea  ice  the  whole  experience  was  over  in 
a  few  days  and  Hut  Point  was  always  in  sight — and  there  was 
daylight.  I  always  had  the  feeling  that  the  whole  series  of  events 
had  been  brought  about  by  an  extraordinary  run  of  accidents, 
and  after  a  certain  stage  it  it  was  quite  beyond  our  power  to  guide 
the  course  of  events.  When,  on  the  way  to  C.  Crozier,  the  moon 
suddenly  came  out  of  the  cloud  to  show  us  a  great  crevasse  which 
would  have  taken  us  all  with  our  sledge  without  any  difficulty, 
I  felt  that  we  were  not  to  go  under  on  this  trip  after  such  a  de- 
liverance. When  we  had  lost  our  tent — and  there  was  a  very 
great  balance  of  probability,  to  me,  that  we  should  never  find  it 
again, — and  were  lying  out  the  blizzard  in  our  bags,  I  believe  we 
were  face  to  face  with  a  long  fight  against  cold  which  we  could 
not  have  survived.  I  cannot  put  down  in  writing  how  helpless  I 
believe  we  were  to  help  ourselves,  and  how  we  were  brought  out 
of  a  terrible  series  of  experiences. 

When  we  started  back  I  had  a  feeling  that  things  might 
change  for  the  better — and  this  day  I  had  a  distinct  idea  that  we 
were  to  have  one  more  bad  experience  and  that  after  that  we 
could  hope  for  better  things.  Bill,  I  know,  has  much  the  same 
feeling  about  a  divine  providence  which  was  looking  after  us.] 

We  then  got  on  well  and  soon  reached  safe  land  ice,  having 
sounded  for  and  found  all  the  cracks  in  our  path  in  time  to  avoid 
or  cross  them  safely. 

We  next  got  on  to  a  very  long  upward  incline,  and  made  good 
going  till  we  had  to  camp,  having  covered  7  J4  miles  in  the  day. 

The  temp,  varied  from  -450  to  -470  during  the  day,  but 
the  weather  was  calm  and  clear  enough  later  on  for  us  to  see 
something  of  where  we  were  going. 

Friday,  July  28,  191 1. — We  were  away  before  daylight  and 
found  ourselves  still  on  the  upward  slope  of  a  very  long  gradient 


42  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [July 

facing  a  gentle  breeze,  which  as  usual  was  flowing  down  the  slope. 
The  Bastion  Crater  was  on  our  right  with  the  Conical  Hill  sur- 
mounting it,  a  landmark  visible  from  Observation  Hill. 

We  went  on  and  on  up  this  slope  until  at  last  we  found  our- 
selves in  a  calm  on  the  divide  with  a  magnificent  view  of  the  West- 
ern Range,  Mt.  Discovery  and  the  Hut  Point  Peninsula  and  all 
the  other  familiar  landmarks  showing  very  clearly  in  the  dim 
daylight.  [I  cannot  describe  what  a  relief  the  light  was  to  us.] 
We  then  knew  we  were  over  Terror  Point  and  almost  out  of  the 
blizzard  area.  The  surface  all  up  this  slope  was  good  going, 
hard  but  smooth,  hardened  however  by  variable  winds  of  no 
great  force,  with  but  few  areas  of  the  softer  sandy  drifts  which 
are  the  heavy  ones  to  drag  over. 

Across  the  divide  we  went  downhill  with  the  air-stream  on 
our  backs,  and  very  soon  we  were  once  more  on  the  old  softer 
crusty  surface  of  the  Barrier  itself,  with  trifling  sastrugi  and 
heavier  pulling,  a  surface  into  which  the  sledge  runners  and  the 
feet  sank  a  couple  of  inches.  Subsidences  again  began  and  soon 
became  frequent.  Bright  fine  weather,  and  Terror  peak  visible 
all  day,  as  well  as  Erebus  from  the  time  when  we  first  caught 
sight  of  it  over  Terror  slope.  One  of  the  features  of  Erebus 
during  the  whole  of  this  march  was  the  outstanding  old  Northern 
Crater,  which  stood  out  boldly  against  the  skyline  part  of  the 
way  down  the  slope.  We  lost  it,  however,  at  the  end  of  to-day's 
march. 

Bowers  turned  his  bag  again  to-day  from  fur  outside  to  fur 
inside,  and  so  it  remained  till  we  reached  Cape  Evans. 

The  temperature  ranged  from  —47-2°  in  the  morning  to 
—  3 8°  in  the  evening.  At  our  lunch  camp  it  was  -40-3°.  We 
made  6j4  miles  in  the  day. 

We  were  now  travelling  with  a  view  to  getting  in  all  the  day- 
light we  could  and  at  the  same  time  with  a  view  to  reducing  our 
nights  to  the  shortest  possible,  for  we  got  but  little  sleep  and 
were  often  uncomfortably  cold  all  night.  We  therefore  turned 
out  generally  at  5.30  a.m.,  lunched  at  2.30  p.m.,  and  camped  at 
6  p.m.,  to  turn  in  between  9  p.m.  and  10  p.m. 

[Though  our  sledge,  which  we  called  the  Pantechnicon,  was 
a  mountain,  and  of  a  considerable  weight,  we  started  to  do  good 
marches.  We  dare  not  roll  up  our  bags  since  the  blizzard  in  case 
they  should  break.    For  two  nights  I  got  a  fair  sleep  in  the  new 


%  .,,,*< 


HUT   POINT   FROM    OBSERVATION    HILL. 


i9"l  THE    BARRIER    'SHUDDER'  43 

eiderdown,  nights  which  would  have  been  nightmares  under  ordi- 
nary circumstances,  but  which  now  put  some  new  life  into  me. 
Bill  was  now  having  the  worst  nights — never  sleeping  as  far  as 
he  knew.  We  were  not  much  better.  My  new  eiderdown  was 
already  sopping  and  as  hard  as  iron:  I  never  thawed  out  the 
greater  part  of  my  big  bag.  Even  Birdie  began  to  shiver  in  his 
bag.  Sometimes  we  would  have  done  a  great  deal  not  to  stop 
marching  and  turn  in :  but  we  had  to  turn  in  each  night  for  six 
or  seven  hours,  rising  about  5  a.m.] 

Our  hands  gave  us  more  pain  with  cold  than  any  other  part, 
and  this  we  all  found  to  be  the  case.  In  the  bags  the  hands,  and 
half-mits  and  any  other  covering  we  liked  to  use  got  soaking  wet, 
and  the  skin  sodden  like  washerwomen's  hands.  The  result,  on 
turning  out,  was  that  they  were  ready  to  freeze  at  once,  and  even 
the  tying  of  the  tent  door  became  a  real  difficulty,  the  more  so  as 
the  tie  had  become  stiff  as  wire.  Another  difficulty  in  the  bags 
was  the  freezing  of  the  lanyards  after  one  had  tied  them  inside 
the  bag.  Nothing  would  loosen  them  save  thawing,  in  one's 
already  painfully  cold  hands,  and  this  was  often  awkward  if  one 
wished  to  turn  out  quickly.  I  believe  the  only  satisfactory  cover- 
ing for  the  hands  in  these  conditions  would  be  a  bag  of  dry  saen- 
negras,  but  we  had  only  sufficient  for  our  feet  and  it  was  not  tried. 

Our  feet  gave  us  very  little  trouble  indeed,  except  on  the 
march,  when  they  were  often  too  cold  for  safety  during  slow  and 
heavy  plodding  in  soft  snow.  We  always  changed  our  footgear 
before  eating  our  supper,  and  to  this  we  attribute  the  fact  that 
we  seldom  had  cold  feet  at  night,  even  at  the  worst. 

Saturday,  July  29,  191 1. — We  got  away  before  daylight  and 
marched  a  good  soft  plod  all  day,  making  Gy2  miles.  Subsidences 
were  frequent,  and  at  lunch  the  whole  tent  and  contents,  myself 
included,  as  I  was  cook  for  the  day,  dropped  suddenly  with  a  per- 
ceptible bump,  and  with  so  long  and  loud  a  reverberation  all 
round  that  we  all  stood  and  listened  for  some  minutes.  Cherry 
said  it  started  when  his  foot  went  through  some  snow  under  the 
top  crust,  not  when  he  was  digging  through  this  crust.  The  cen- 
tral subsidence  set  off  innumerable  others  all  round  and  these 
others  in  continually  widening  circles,  and  the  noise  took  quite 
two  or  three  minutes  to  die  away. 

We  had  no  wind  to-day,  calm  and  southerly  airs  only,  and  a 
temp,  ranging  from  -420  A.M.  to  -45-3°  P.M. 


44  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [July 

There  was  an  aurora  all  night,  and  at  3  a.m.  Bowers  noted  a 
brilliant  variegated  curtain,  altitude  300  to  6o°,  extending  from 
the  N.E.  to  about  S.S.W.,  with  much  motion  in  the  rays,  and  with 
orange  and  green  well  defined. 

Sunday,  July  30,  191 1. — We  had  a  day  of  perfect  weather 
and  good  travelling  and  covered  7^  miles.  The  amount  of  day- 
light during  this  and  the  preceding  two  days  has  been  surprisingly 
great,  and  enabled  us  to  see  a  tremendous  amount  of  detail  in  the 
hills  and  snow  slopes  of  the  promontory  on  our  right,  all  of  which 
looked  very  much  nearer  than  they  actually  were.  The  dawn 
on  the  eastern  horizon  was  also  exceptionally  fine  in  colour,  al- 
most pure  carmine  in  a  very  broad  band,  changing  imperceptibly, 
but  without  any  intermediate  orange  or  yellow,  into  green  and 
blue  above.  The  peaks  of  the  Western  Range  all  caught  pink 
lights  reflected  from  the  sky,  and  these  shone  up  against  the 
greyer  pink  foreglow  behind  them.  None  of  them  caught  the 
actual  sunlight  yet. 

The  temp,  was  low,  -  S5'3°  m  tne  morning,  -  63-2°  to  -  61  -8° 
in  the  afternoon,  and  on  to  the  evening,  with  light  easterly  and 
north-easterly  airs  from  time  to  time.  [Apropos  of  the  cold:  we 
now  got  low  temperatures  once  more,  but  -  6o°  now  hardly  called 
for  comment;  in  fact  some  nights  of  -  6o°  we  never  even  in- 
quired temperature.] 

Once  we  saw  a  drift  swirl  suddenly  spring  into  the  air  about 
100  ft.  high  and  sweep  along  the  surface  for  a  long  way  before 
it  disappeared. 

After  lunch  we  had  interesting  views  of  the  formation  and 
dispersal  of  fog  banks  which  formed  from  time  to  time  all  along 
the  Hut  Point  promontory.  There  appeared  to  be  a  line  along 
which  the  cold  Barrier  air  met  the  warmer  sea  ice  air  of  the 
north  side.  Fog  resulted,  which  gradually  rose  and  spread,  and 
blotted  out  all  the  land  ahead  of  us,  and  then  as  rapidly  dispersed 
to  the  south,  leaving  the  whole  sky  and  air  as  clear  and  bright 
as  before.  This  happened  again  and  again  with  no  formation  of 
cloud  south  of  the  ridge. 

Eventually,  however,  the  northerly  wind  came  over,  rising, 
and  forming  a  complete  overcast  beneath  which  one  could  see 
the  Western  and  Southern  Mountains  and  horizon  all  perfectly 
clear. 

We  saw  to-day  and  yesterday,  hanging  round  the  summits  of 


i9ii]  SMOOTHER    SURFACE  45 

Erebus  and  Terror,  some  very  unusually  delicate  spider-web-like 
cirrus  cloudlets,  coloured  dark  reddish,  and  looking  like  tangled 
thread  or  like  unravelled  silk — they  were  slight  and  thin,  but 
very  well  defined,  and  they  changed  very  slowly. 

Monday,  July  31,  191 1. — We  turned  out  soon  after  5  A.M. 
and  had  calm  clear  weather  again  ahead  of  us,  though  Terror 
was  apparently  again  in  trouble,  for  it  was  covered  in  a  cap  cloud. 

We  had  good  going  and  had  covered  ^A  miles  in  $y2  hours 
by  the  time  we  reached  the  edge  of  the  Barrier  about  1  y2  miles 
off  the  Pram  Point  ridges. 

The  surface  of  the  Barrier  during  this  march  had  to-day  be- 
come very  much  harder  and  more  windswept.  It  was  not  cut 
into  sastrugi,  but  polished  into  low,  flatly  rounded  areas,  with 
only  occasional  drifts  of  sandy  snow,  which  dragged  heavily  and 
allowed  the  feet  to  sink  in  through  a  thin  crust.  The  difference 
this  walking  on  a  hard  surface  made  to  the  warmth  of  our  feet 
was  very  noticeable,  notwithstanding  that  the  temperature  was 
still -570. 

At  the  Barrier  edge  we  simply  ran  down  a  drift  slope  on  to 
the  sea  ice,  which  had  only  a  few  inches  of  snow  covering,  six 
inches  at  the  most  as  noted  by  Bowers,  and  hard  and  windswept. 
Here  again  we  felt  the  flow  of  cold  air  pouring  from  the  Barrier 
on  to  the  sea  ice,  so  we  camped  about  100  yards  away  to  be  out 
of  it  and  had  lunch.  The  temp,  here  was  —  43 °.  The  sledge- 
meter  now  showed  38  miles  from  our  camp  in  the  Knoll  gap  at 
Cape  Crozier.  From  this  point  to  Hut  Point  was  3  miles,  and 
it  was  again  an  excellent  hardened  smooth  snow  surface  all  the 
way  to  Cape  Armitage,  and  rather  the  same  rough,  crunchy 
sea  ice,  with  very  few  snow-covered  patches,  from  Cape  Armi- 
tage to  Hut  Point. 

By  the  time  we  reached  the  hut  the  sky  had  become  com- 
pletely overcast  and  the  temp,  had  gone  up  to  -  27 °.  It  was 
still  quite  calm,  and  the  sky  cleared  again  during  the  night.  We 
camped  at  the  hut.  [The  last  day  we  had  been  using  our  oil  to 
warm  ourselves,  since  we  had  a  half  tin  left,  having  used  the  first 
half  very  sparingly.  Birdie  made  a  bottom  for  the  cooker  out 
of  an  empty  biscuit  tin,  which  was  most  successful.  We  cooked 
on  Bill's  bag  in  the  middle,  generally  one  of  us  steadying  the 
cooker  with  his  hands. 

It  used  to  be  quite  a  common  experience  to  spill  some  water 


46  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [August 

or  hoosh  on  to  our  bags  as  they  lay  on  the  floorcloth.  This  did 
not  worry  us,  since  it  was  practically  impossible  for  our  bags  to 
be  wetter  than  they  were. 

During  the  last  four  days  Birdie  quite  often  fell  asleep  as 
he  was  marching;  I  do  not  know  that  Bill  ever  did  this.  I 
never  did  so  till  the  last  day  when  for  about  an  hour  I  was  fall- 
ing asleep  constantly  as  we  marched  along — waking  when  I  came 
up  against  Bill  or  Birdie.] 

Tuesday,  August  I,  191 1. — In  the  hut  we  pitched  the  dome 
tent  and  lit  a  primus  to  warm  it  while  we  cooked  our  supper. 
We  had  thus  a  much  more  comfortable  night  than  the  blubber 
stove  could  have  given  us. 

[The  hut  struck  us  as  fairly  warm;  we  could  almost  feel  it 
getting  warmer  as  we  went  round  C.  Armitage.  We  managed 
to  haul  the  sledge  up  the  ice  foot.  We  pitched  the  dome  tent 
in  the  place  where  Crean  used  to  sleep  and  got  both  primus  going 
in  it— for  there  was  plenty  of  oil  there,  and  we  got  it  really 
warm,  and  drank  cocoa  without  sugar  so  thick  that  next  morn- 
ing we  were  gorged  with  it.  We  were  very  happy,  falling  asleep 
between  each  mouthful.  After  some  hours  of  this  we  discussed 
several  schemes  of  not  getting  into  our  bags  at  all,  but  settled 
it  was  best  to  do  so.] 

We  had  three  hours  in  our  bags  and  turned  out  at  3  A.M., 
hoping  to  make  an  early  start  to  get  into  Cape  Evans  before 
dinner-time.  But  a  strong  easterly  wind  got  up  and  prevented 
our  start,  so  we  continued  to  doze  in  the  tent  as  we  sat  there,  in 
preference  to  being  in  our  bags. 

At  9.30  a.m.  the  wind  dropped,  and  we  got  away  at  11,  but 
met  with  a  very  cold  breeze  off  the  land  on  rounding  Hut  Point. 
We  walked  out  of  it,  however,  in  a  mile  or  so  by  getting  into  the 
open,  and  then  made  a  straight  course  all  the  way  for  Cape 
Evans,  deciding  not  to  camp  for  lunch  until  we  had  passed  the 
broken  ice  off  the  end  of  Glacier  Tongue  by  daylight.  This  took 
us  ^y2  hours,  and  we  camped  at  4.30  p.m.,  exactly  8  miles  from 
Hut  Point. 

The  surface  was  varied,  and  we  were  a  mile  or  so  farther 
out  all  the  way  on  this  our  return  journey  than  on  our  outward 
journey,  so  it  differed  rather  from  the  surface  we  had  then. 

After  leaving  Hut  Point  we  had  very  rough,  rubbly  sea  ice 
with  no  snow  worth  mentioning  for  two  or  three  miles.     What 


I9i 


BACK   AT   CAPE    EVANS  47 


indications  there  were  of  wind  came  from  the  land  and  showed 
north-easterly  winds  off  shore.  Their  direction,  however,  very 
gradually  altered  till  we  were  crossing  them  exactly  at  right 
angles,  indicating  due  easterly  winds  from  the  ridge.  Later 
still  and  farther  on  towards  the  Glacier  Tongue  and  Cape  Evans 
the  indications  gradually  turned  to  show  south-easterly  winds. 
These  are  the  winds  which  seem  chiefly  to  affect  the  surface  of 
the  strait  ice  during  the  winter,  and  as  we  got  on  towards  the 
Glacier  Tongue  the  snow-covering  became  increasingly  greater, 
as  well  as  the  evidence  of  stronger  easterly  winds.  Extensive 
flatly  rounded,  hard-surfaced  drifts  became  more  abundant  and 
afforded  excellent  going,  so  that  when  we  were  about  6  miles 
from  Hut  Point  we  were  doing  about  2  miles  an  hour.  After 
this,  and  especially  during  the  8th  mile  from  Hut  Point,  we  met 
with  a  lot  of  hummocky  cracks  where  the  ice  had  been  pressed 
up  into  long  ridges,  and  subsequently  had  been  drifted  up,  form- 
ing very  difficult  sastrugi  and  providing  much  trouble  for  a 
sledge.  We  still  had  sufficient  daylight,  and  after  lunch,  moon- 
light, to  negotiate  these,  though  it  was  easy  to  see  how  much 
trouble  they  might  give  one  in  the  dark,  as  they  did  on  our  way 
out. 

All  the  day  we  were  watching  the  changes  in  some  iridescent 
clouds  which  hung  low  on  the  northern  horizon.  The  edges  were 
brilliant  with  pale  yellow  sunlight,  while  inside  this  was  a  broad 
band  of  orange  yellow,  and  inside  this  again  a  narrow  band  of 
grey  surrounding  a  large  and  vivid  patch  of  emerald  green. 
There  was  no  trace  of  the  violet  and  rose  pink  which  charac- 
terises the  opalescent  cirrus  clouds  one  sees  later  on  when  the 
sun  is  higher  in  the  sky. 

On  the  actual  horizon  was  a  band  of  rich  red  with  purple 
streaks  of  cloud  on  it,  giving  it  a  very  unusual  magenta  colour. 

After  lunch  we  had  good  moonlight  and  a  good  windswept, 
snow-covered  surface — and  though  there  were  more  of  these 
pressure  ridges  abreast  of  Tent  Island  we  had  plenty  of  light 
to  negotiate  them. 

We  had  had  no  wind  to-day.  The  temp,  had  ranged  from 
-27-3°  at  Hut  Point  to  -310  off  Glacier  Tongue. 

Off  Inaccessible  Island  at  9.30  p.m.  we  were  met  by  a  north- 
erly breeze  of  force  3,  which  continued  until  our  arrival  at  Cape 
Evans.     [I  well  remember  when  we  got  into  the  hut  here,  and 


48  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [August 

we  were  very  keen  to  get  in  without  any  fuss.  We  got  right  up 
to  the  door  before  anyone  saw  us,  and  then  I  simply  could  not 
get  out  of  my  harness. 

As  we  came  round  the  Point,  Bill  asked  us  to  spread  out  if 
anyone  came  out  of  the  Hut,  to  show  we  were  all  there — a  very 
useful  idea.] 

This  was  the  thirty-sixth  day  of  our  absence. 

E.  A.  Wilson. 

So  ends  the  official  report  of  the  Cape  Crozier  Party,  simple 
and  reticent  to  the  last.  But  again  the  reader,  eager  for  more 
colour,  will  welcome  the  fuller  description  of  the  last  march 
home,  the  welcome  at  Cape  Evans,  and  general  impressions  of 
travel,  which  we  owe  to  Mr.  Cherry-Garrard's  pen. 

We  just  pulled  for  all  we  were  worth  and  did  nearly  two  miles 
an  hour;  for  two  miles  a  baddish  salt  surface,  then  big,  undu- 
lating, hard  sastrugi  and  good  going.  Several  times  I  fell  asleep 
as  we  were  marching.  We  had  done  eight  miles  by  4  p.m.  and 
were  past  Glacier  Tongue.  Then  half  a  mile  of  bad  pressure  ice 
running  from  Glacier  Tongue  to  Tent  Island,  and  then  rather 
worse  going  past  Inaccessible,  where  we  met  a  strong  northerly 
wind.  Up  to  now  the  light  from  the  moon  had  been  good,  but 
now  the  light  was  worse  and  we  were  very  done.  At  last  we 
rounded  the  Cape  and  gradually  pulled  in  and  right  up  to  the 
door,  without  disturbing  anything.  As  we  were  getting  out  of 
our  harness,  always  a  big  business  in  our  frozen  state,  Hooper 
came  out,  suddenly  said  '  By  Jove !  '  and  rushed  back,  and  then 
there  was  pandemonium. 

It  was  9.30  P.M.,  and  a  good  many  had  turned  out  of  their 
beds.  Everybody  hung  on  to  some  part  of  us  and  got  our  clothes 
off :  mine  next  morning  weighed  24  lbs.  As  they  heard  our  story 
or  bits  of  it  they  became  more  and  more  astonished.  We  were 
set  down  to  cocoa  and  bread  and  butter  and  jam:  we  did  not 
want  anything  else.  Scott  I  heard  say,  '  But,  look  here,  you 
know,  this  is  the  hardest  journey  that  has  ever  been  made.'  They 
told  us  afterwards  that  we  had  a  look  in  our  faces  as  if  we  were 
at  our  last  gasp,  a  look  which  had  quite  gone  next  morning. 
Ponting  said  he  had  seen  the  same  look  on  some  Russian  pris- 
oners'  faces  at  Mukden.     I  just  tumbled  into  my  dry,  warm 


i9ii]  STATE    OF   SLEEPING-BAGS  49 

blankets.  I  expect  it  was  as  near  an  approach  to  bliss  as  a  man 
can  get  on  this  earth. 

Sleeping-bags.  (Written  August  3,  191 1.) — The  life  of 
a  man  on  such  a  journey  as  this  depends  mainly  upon  the  life  of 
his  sleeping-bag.  We  all  three  of  us  took  eiderdown  linings. 
Bill's  bag  proved  really  too  small  to  take  his  eiderdown,  and 
on  the  return  journey  his  bag  split  down  the  seams  to  an  alarm- 
ing extent,  letting  in  the  cold  air.  Latterly  in  this  journey  it  was 
by  no  means  an  uncommon  experience  for  us  to  take  over  an 
hour  in  getting  into  our  bags.  One  night  I  especially  remember 
when  Bill  had  practically  given  up  all  hope  of  getting  his  head 
into  his.  He  finally  cut  off  the  flaps  of  his  eiderdown,  and  with 
Birdie  on  one  side  and  myself  on  the  other  we  managed  to  lever 
the  lid  of  the  head  of  the  bag  open  and  gradually  he  got  his 
head  into  it.  I  made  a  great  mistake  in  taking  a  '  large-sized ' 
bag — though  it  was  a  small  one.  What  a  man  really  wants  is 
a  large  '  middle-sized  '  bag.  The  last  fortnight,  whenever  the 
temperature  was  very  low,  I  never  thawed  out  the  parts  of  my 
bag  which  were  not  pressing  tight  up  against  my  body.  I  have 
forgotten  what  Bill's  and  Birdie's  bags  weighed  when  we  got 
in.  Mine  (bag  and  eiderdown)  was  45  lbs.,  personal  gear  10 
lbs.  When  we  started  that  bag  was  about  18  lbs.:  the  accumu- 
lation of  ice  was  therefore  27  lbs. 

Birdie's  bag  just  fitted  him  beautifully,  though  perhaps  it 
would  have  been  a  little  small  with  an  eiderdown  inside.  As  I 
understand  from  Atkinson,  Birdie  had  undoubtedly  a  greater 
heat  supply  than  other  men  ordinarily  have.  He  never  had 
serious  trouble  with  his  feet,  while  ours  were  constantly  frost- 
bitten. He  slept  I  should  be  afraid  to  say  how  much  longer  than 
we  did,  even  in  the  last  days.  It  was  a  pleasure  to  lie  awake, 
practically  at  any  rate  all  night,  and  hear  his  snores.  Largely 
owing  to  the  arrangement  of  toggles,  also  not  having  shipped  his 
eiderdown  bag,  but  mainly  due  to  his  extraordinary  energy,  he 
many  times  turned  his  bag  during  the  journey,  and  thus  he  got 
rid  of  a  lot  of  the  moisture  in  his  bag,  which  came  out  as  snow 
or  actual  knobs  of  ice.  When  we  did  turn  our  bags,  the  only 
way  was  directly  we  turned  out,  and  even  then  you  had  to  be 
quick  before  the  bag  froze.  Getting  out  of  the  tent  at  night,  it 
was  quite  a  race  to  get  back  to  your  bag,  before  it  began  to  get 
hard  again.    Of  course  this  was  in  the  lowest  temperatures. 

VOL.  11 — 4 


50  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [August 

On  the  return  journey  we  never  rolled  our  bags  up,  but  let 
them  freeze  out  straight — arranging  them  carefully  so  that  they 
should  freeze  in  the  best  shape  for  gettting  into  them  again. 
On  the  Barrier  they  were  literally  as  hard  as  boards,  but  coming 
back  down  the  Sound  they  never  got  so  hard  that  they  would  not 
bend.  I  cannot  say  what  a  self-sacrifice  I  consider  it  to  have 
been  that  Birdie  handed  over  his  dry  eiderdown  to  me  when  we 
were  coming  back.  At  the  time  a  dry  sleeping-bag  would  have 
been  of  more  value  to  any  of  us  than  untold  wealth. 

Our  bags  were  of  course  much  worse  after  lying  out  a  bliz- 
zard in  them. 

Clothes. — The  details  of  our  clothes  were  all  taken  down  by 
Scott  after  we  got  in,  and  I  will  not  repeat.  We  all  agreed  that 
we  could  not  have  bettered  our  clothing.  I  was  foolish  in  start- 
ing with  a  vest  which  I  had  worn  some  time  and  which  had 
stretched.  A  close-fitting  vest  would  have  been  much  warmer. 
As  it  was,  on  the  march  on  the  stillest  [day]  there  seemed  to  be 
a  draught  blowing  straight  up  my  back. 

Before  we  had  been  many  days  in  these  very  cold  tempera- 
tures our  clothes  used  to  freeze  so  stiff  in  a  few  seconds  after 
stepping  outside  the  tent,  that  from  our  waists  upwards  we  could 
never  move  our  body  or  heads  from  that  position  until  they 
were  thawed  out  again  at  the  next  meal.  We  therefore  got  into 
the  way  of  getting  frozen  in  a  position  which  would  be  most  com- 
fortable. Our  arms  we  moved  with  a  good  deal  of  straining,  and 
getting  into  our  harness  was  always  a  long  job,  all  three  doing  one 
set  of  harness  at  a  time.  We  got  into  the  way  of  doing  every- 
thing with  mits  on  and  very  slowly,  stopping  immediately  our 
hands  were  going,  and  restoring  the  circulation. 

Routine. — We  used  to  turn  in  for  at  least  seven  hours.  This 
was  the  worst  part  of  the  day,  and  breakfast  to  me  became  in 
consequence  quite  the  best  meal.  Sometimes  I  used  to  feel  like 
shouting  that  it  must  be  time  to  get  up.  Getting  under  weigh  in 
the  morning  used  to  take  generally  a  little  under  four  hours,  3^2 
hours  as  far  as  I  can  remember  was  good.  Going  out  we  had 
the  primus  going  a  large  part  of  the  time,  though  we  turned  it 
low  after  the  meal  was  cooked.  In  the  worst  times  we  used  to 
light  the  primus  while  we  were  in  our  bags  in  the  morning  and 
keep  it  going  until  wc  were  just  getting  or  had  got  the  mouth 
of  our  bags  levered  open  in  the  evening.    We  also  tried  getting 


TRACK    OF     JOURNEY  FROM 

EVA"NS  TO    CAPE    CROZIER 

JUNE  27™  TO  AUGUST  l8?  1911. 


Statute  Miles 


New  York  :  Dodd.  Mead  &c  Company. 


Reproduced  at  Stanford's  Geog!  Estab' London 


i9»]  LIGHTING   UP  51 

the  primus  into  our  bags  to  thaw  them  out,  but  it  was  not  very 
successful.  Cooking  coming  back  was  a  much  longer  process, 
since  we  had  to  hold  the  cooker  up,  having  lost  its  proper  stand 
and  the  top  of  the  outer  cooker — though  Birdie's  substitute  was 
very  good. 

After  breakfast  we  would  be  pretty  warm,  and  having  loaded 
the  sledge  the  next  job  was  to  get  a  bearing  on  to  some  star  or 
the  moon  if  anything  was  visible.  This  meant  lighting  matches, 
always  a  big  business.  To  light  the  candle  in  the  tent  we  used 
sometimes  to  have  to  try  three  or  even  four  boxes  before  one 
would  light.     Steering  was  very  haphazard  generally. 

Then  into  our  harness — and  then  four  hours'  march  or 
relaying,  if  possible.  The  possibility  depended  on  whether  our 
feet  got  too  cold,  but  the  difficulty  was  to  know  when  they  were 
frostbitten. 

Relaying  was  at  first  by  naked  candle — later  by  hurricane 
lamp — following  back  our  tracks  in  the  snow  for  the  second 
sledge.  We  never  could  decide  which  was  the  heavier.  We 
camped  for  lunch  if  possible  before  we  got  too  cold,  since  this 
was  always  a  cold  job. 

We  cooked  alternately  day  by  day.  The  worst  part  was 
lighting  up.  The  weekly  bag  was  very  cold  to  handle.  Gener- 
ally (often)  we  had  to  take  off  our  finnesko  or  one  of  them  to 
examine  our  feet  and  nurse  them  back  if  they  were  gone. 

Then  four  hours'  march  more  if  possible. 

Footgear  on  as  soon  as  possible  on  camping.  Our  night 
footgear  was  very  good. 

It  is  also  difficult  already,  after  two  nights'  rest,  with  a 
dozen  men  all  round  anticipating  your  every  wish,  and  with  the 
new  comfortable  life  of  the  hut  all  round  you,  to  realise  com- 
pletely how  bad  the  last  few  weeks  have  been,  how  at  times  one 
hardly  cared  whether  we  got  through  or  not,  so  long  as  (I  speak 
for  myself)  if  I  was  to  go  under  it  would  not  take  very  long. 
Although  our  weights  are  not  very  different,  I  am  only  1  lb.  and 
Bill  and  Birdie  3^  lbs.  lighter  than  when  we  started.  We  were 
very  done  when  we  got  in,  falling  asleep  on  the  march,  and  un- 
able to  get  into  our  finnesko  or  eat  our  meals  without  falling- 
asleep.  Although  we  were  doing  good  marches  up  to  the  end, 
we  were  pulling  slow  and  weak,  and  the  cold  was  getting  at  us 
in  a  way  in  which  it  had  never  touched  us  before.    Our  fingers 


52  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

were  positive  agony  immediately  we  took  them  out  of  our  mits, 
and  to  undo  a  lashing  took  a  very  long  time.  The  night  we 
got  in  Scott  said  he  thought  it  was  the  hardest  journey  which  had 
ever  been  made.  Bill  says  it  was  infinitely  worse  than  the  South- 
ern Journey  in  1902—3. 

I  would  like  to  put  it  on  record  that  Captain  Scott  considered 
this  journey  to  be  the  hardest  which  had  ever  been  done.  This 
was  a  well-considered  judgment. 

A.  Cherry-Garrard. 


,,  ! 


Members  of  the  Northern  Party 

Lieutenant  Victor  L.  A.  Campbell,  R.N. ;  Surgeon  G.  Murray 
Levick,  R.N.;  Raymond  E.  Priestley  (Geologist)  ;  Petty  officer 
G.  P.  Abbott,  R.N. ;  Petty  officer  F.  V.  Browning,  R.N. ;  Seaman 
H.  Dickason,  R.N. 


NARRATIVE    OF   THE    NORTHERN    PARTY 

Between  January  25,  191 1,  and  January  18,  1913 
By  Victor  L.  A.  Campbell,  R.N.,  Commander 

Wednesday,  January  25,  191 1. — We  said  goodbye  to  Cap- 
tain Scott  and  the  Southern  Depot  Party,  and  at  9  the  following 
morning  left  Glacier  Tongue  for  Butter  Point,  to  land  the  West- 
ern Geological  Party.  A  light  southerly  wind  had  cleared  the 
loose  ice  out  of  the  bay,  and  we  had  no  difficulty  in  getting  the 
ship  alongside  the  ice  foot,  so  that  by  6  the  same  evening  we 
had  landed  the  party,  laid  out  a  depot,  and  left  on  our  cruise 
to  the  eastward,  where  I  hoped  to  effect  a  landing,  if  not  on 
King  Edward's  Land  itself,  at  least  in  some  inlet  near  the  eastern 
end  of  the  Barrier. 

I  had  received  the  following  instructions  from  Captain 
Scott,  and  they  explain  our  subsequent  movements: 

Winter  Quarters,  Cape  Evans, 

23rd  January,  1911. 

'  Instructions  to  Leader  of  Eastern  Party 

'  Directions  as  to  the  landing  of  your  party  are  contained 
in  the  instructions  to  the  Commanding  Officer  of  the  Terra  Nova 
handed  to  you  herewith. 

4  Whilst  I  hope  that  you  may  be  able  to  land  in  King  Ed- 
ward's Land,  I  fully  realise  the  possibility  of  the  conditions  being 
unfavourable  and  the  difficulty  of  the  task  which  has  been  set 
you. 

' 1  do  not  think  you  should  attempt  a  landing  unless  the  Ship 
can  remain  in  security  near  you  for  at  least  three  days,  unless 
all  your  stores  can  be  placed  in  a  position  of  safety  in  a  shorter 
time. 

'  The  Ship  will  give  you  all  possible  help  in  erecting  your 
hut,  &c,  but  I  hope  you  will  not  find  it  necessary  to  keep  her 
by  you  for  any  length  of  time. 


INSTRUCTIONS  $S 

1  Should  you  succeed  in  landing,  the  object  you  will  hold  in 
view  is  to  discover  the  nature  and  extent  of  King  Edward's 
Land.  The  possibilities  of  your  situation  are  so  various  that  it 
must  be  left  to  you  entirely  to  determine  how  this  object  may 
best  be  achieved. 

1  In  this  connexion  it  remains  only  to  say  that  you  should 
be  at  your  winter  station  and  ready  to  embark  on  February  i, 
1912. 

'If  the  Ship  should  not  arrive  by  February  15,  and  your 
circumstances  permit,  you  should  commence  to  retreat  across  the 
Barrier,  keeping  at  first  near  the  edge  in  order  to  see  the  Ship 
should  she  pass. 

'  It  would  be  a  wise  precaution  to  lay  out  a  depot  in  this 
direction  at  an  earlier  date,  and  I  trust  that  a  further  depot  will 
be  provided  in  some  inlet  as  you  go  east  in  the  Ship. 

'  When  I  hear  that  you  have  been  safely  landed  in  King 
Edward's  Land  I  shall  take  steps  to  ensure  that  a  third  depot 
is  laid  out.  This  will  be  placed  by  the  Western  Party  one  mile 
from  the  Barrier  Edge  and  thirty  miles  from  Cape  Crozier. 

1  You  will  of  course  travel  light  on  such  a  journey,  and 
remember  that  fresh  food  can  be  obtained  at  Cape  Crozier.  A 
sledge  sail  should  help  you. 

'  From  Cape  Crozier  you  should  make  for  Hut  Point,  where 
shelter  and  food  will  be  found  pending  the  freezing  over  of  the 
bays  to  the  north. 

'  Should  you  be  unable  to  land  in  the  region  of  King  Ed- 
ward's Land  you  will  be  at  liberty  to  go  to  the  region  of  Robert- 
son Bay  after  communicating  with  Cape  Evans. 

'  I  think  it  very  possible  that  a  suitable  wintering  spot 
may  be  found  in  the  vicinity  of  Smith's  Inlet,  but  the  Ship 
must  be  handled  with  care  as  I  have  reason  to  believe  that  the 
pack  sometimes  presses  on  this  coast. 

'  Should  you  be  landed  in  or  near  Robertson  Bay  you  will 
not  expect  to  be  relieved  until  March  in  the  following  year,  but 
you  should  be  in  readiness  to  embark  on  February  25. 

4  The  main  object  of  your  exploration  in  this  region  would 
naturally  be  the  coast  westward  of  Cape  North. 

1  Should  the  Ship  have  not  returned  by  March  25  it  will  be 
necessary  for  you  to  prepare  for  a  second  winter. 

'  In  no  case  would  it  be  advisable  for  you  to  attempt  to 


56  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [January 

retreat  along  the  coast.  Seals  and  penguins  should  be  plentiful 
and  possibly  some  useful  stores  may  remain  at  Cape  Adare,  but 
the  existence  of  stores  should  not  be  regarded  as  more  than  a 
possibility. 

1  In  conclusion  I  wish  you  all  possible  good  luck,  feeling 
assured  that  you  will  deserve  it. 

(Signed)    R.  Scott. 

By  9  A.M.  on  the  27th  we  were  off  Cape  Crozier  and  com- 
menced our  survey  of  the  Barrier  to  see  what  changes  had  taken 
place  since  1901. 

About  9  A.M.  on  January  30  we  passed  an  inlet  opening  N. 
by  W.,  1 100  yards  long,  250  wide,  having  perpendicular  sides 
about  90  feet  high. 

This  evening  about  seven  we  saw  a  large  piece  of  the  Bar- 
rier break  off.  We  were  at  the  time  within  900  yards  of  the 
cliff,  when  we  heard  a  noise  like  thunder  and  saw  a  cloud  of 
spray  rise  up  about  half  a  mile  ahead  of  us.  The  cloud  of 
spray  completely  hid  the  Barrier  at  that  place,  and  as  this 
cleared  we  saw  that  a  large  piece  had  broken  off,  while  debris 
of  ice  was  forced  out  across  our  bows,  making  us  alter  course 
to  avoid  it. 

January  31. — While  steaming  up  a  bay  this  afternoon  an- 
other large  piece  of  the  Barrier  broke  away.  It  must  have  been 
five  miles  away,  but  we  heard  the  noise  like  a  peal  of  thunder  and 
through  our  glasses  saw  a  cloud  of  spray  hanging  over  the  place 
like  a  fog. 

Soon  after  3  p.m.  we  were  up  at  the  head  of  the  bay,  when 
we  found  new  ice  had  formed.  The  Barrier  here  runs  down 
nearly  to  the  water's  edge,  and  were  it  only  farther  to  the  east- 
ward would  not  be  a  bad  place  to  winter. 

A  number  of  Sibbald  whales  were  blowing  in  the  bay,  and 
on  the  ice  we  saw  several  seals,  and  some  Emperor  penguins. 
Time  and  coal  were  precious;  so  we  did  not  wait,  but  turned, 
and  steamed  out  of  the  bay. 

On  getting  outside  we  found  a  strong  S.E.  wind,  and  as 
we  had  the  current  against  us  as  well,  we  decided  not  to  work 
along  the  Barrier,  but  to  shape  course  direct  for  Cape  Colbeck, 
in  which  case  we  could  carry  fore  and  aft  sail.  We  encountered 
strong  S.E.  wind  but  no  pack,  until  3  o'clock  on  the  morning 


i9ii]  KING    EDWARD'S   LAND  57 

of  the  2nd,  when  we  made  heavy  pack  with  a  number  of  small 
bergs  in  it  right  ahead. 

The  sea  was  breaking  heavily  on  the  pack  edge,  so  we  altered 
course  to  the  southward,  and  after  a  few  hours'  steaming  against 
a  nasty  head  sea  we  got  round  it.  About  eight  o'clock  the  wind 
fell,  and  shortly  afterwards  we  sighted  what  was  apparently  ice- 
covered  land  on  the  starboard  bow — soundings  gave  208 
fathoms.  The  day  was  lovely,  and  we  had  a  good  view  of 
the  land,  which  proved  to  be  Cape  Colbeck,  a  long  convex  ice 
dome  without  a  rock  showing.  Sextant  angles  made  the  summit 
750  feet  high,  while  the  ice  face  averaged  100  feet.  Some  heavy 
pack  and  a  large  number  of  bergs  were  lying  off  the  cliff,  but 
working  our  way  slowly  through  we  found  open  water  under 
the  cliff.  Our  prospects  were  now  bright;  open  water  ahead 
and  a  perfect  day.  However,  in  the  afternoon  our  hopes  were 
blighted;  about  10  miles  east  of  Cape  Colbeck  we  came  on  a 
line  of  solid  unbroken  pack,  into  which  a  number  of  bergs  were 
frozen,  stretching  from  the  ice  cliffs  of  King  Edward's  Land  out 
to  the  N.W.  as  far  as  we  could  see  from  the  crow's  nest.  We 
steamed  up  to  the  edge  of  the  ice,  stopped,  and  sounded,  getting 
bottom  at  169  fathoms. 

Several  seals,  one  of  which  looked  like  a  sea  leopard,  and 
some  Adelie  and  Emperor  penguins  were  on  the  ice,  while  large 
flocks  of  Antarctic  petrels  were  flying  about  everywhere. 

The  ice  cliffs,  stretching  as  far  as  we  could  see,  gave  us 
no  hope  of  finding  a  landing-place. 

There  is  evidence  of  a  great  deal  of  pressure  here  and  the 
upper  edge  of  the  cliff  near  us,  100  feet  high,  showed  a  pressure 
ridge,  where  evidently  a  large  berg  had  been  forced  against  it. 

At  5  p.m.  we  reluctantly  turned  and  retraced  our  steps,  the 
only  chance  of  a  landing-place  being  Balloon  Bight  or  some 
inlet  at  the  east  end  of  the  Barrier.  Soundings  off  Cape  Colbeck 
gave  us  89  fathoms.  During  the  nip^ht  we  sailed  as  close  as 
possible  to  the  ice  face  but  passed  nothing  but  high  cliffs.  About 
3  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  3rd  a  strong  S.E.  wind  sprang 
up,  bringing  a  low  mist,  but  not  thick  enough  to  prevent  us 
keeping  close  to  the  coast.  Soon  after  the  cliff  dipped  a  little 
and  appeared  on  both  bows,  showing  we  were  running  into  a 
bay;  this  was  the  place  where  I  had  had  great  hopes  of  effecting 
a  landing,  but  we  were  unable  to  do  so. 


58  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

It  was  interesting  to  note  that  while  the  eastern  side  of  the 
bay  was  clean  cut,  the  western  side  was  much  weather  worn  and 
honeycombed  with  caves,  evidently  worn  by  the  strong  westerly 
current  which  sweeps  along  the  Barrier.  We  saw  two  narrow 
inlets  opening  N.E.  but  not  wide  enough  to  trust  the  ship  in; 
moreover  as  they  open  in  this  direction  they  are  more  liable  to 
be  blocked  by  any  loose  ice  drifting  in. 

In  the  afternoon  the  weather  cleared  and  we  were  able 
to  get  sights,  showing  we  were  still  to  the  eastward  of  Balloon 
Bight.  By  9  a.m.  we  were  off  the  place  where  Balloon  Bight 
should  have  been,  and  our  sights  put  us  south  of  the  old  Barrier 
edge.  There  was  no  doubt  about  it;  Balloon  Bight  had  gone. 
By  midnight  we  were  off  Shackleton's  Bay  of  Whales.  On 
rounding  the  eastern  point  our  surprise  can  be  imagined  when 
we  saw  a  ship,  which  I  recognised  as  the  Fram,  made  fast  along- 
side the  sea  ice. 

Standing  in,  we  made  fast  a  little  way  ahead  of  her  and 
hoisted  our  colours,  she  answering  with  the  Norwegian  ensign. 
There  was  no  doubt  it  was  Captain  Amundsen. 

Pennell  and  I  immediately  went  on  board  and  saw  Lieutenant 
Neilsen,  who  was  in  command.  He  told  us  Amundsen  was  up 
at  the  camp  about  three  miles  in,  over  the  sea  ice,  but  would 
be  down  about  9  o'clock,  and  accordingly  soon  after  9  I  returned 
on  board  and  saw  Amundsen,  who  told  me  his  plans.  He  had 
been  here  since  January  4,  after  a  good  passage,  having  been 
held  only  four  days  in  the  pack.  He  had  intended  wintering 
at  Balloon  Bight,  but  on  finding  that  had  gone,  had  fixed  on 
the  Bay  of  Whales  as  the  best  place. 

He  asked  me  to  come  up  and  see  his  camp,  so  Pennell, 
Levick  and  I  went  up,  and  found  he  had  erected  his  hut  on  the 
Barrier,  about  3  miles  from  the  coast.  The  camp  presented  a 
very  workmanlike  appearance,  with  a  good  sized  hut  containing 
a  kitchen  and  living  room  with  a  double  tier  of  bunks  round 
the  walls,  while  outside  several  tents  were  up  and  116  fine 
Greenland  dogs  picketed  round. 

His  party  besides  himself  consisted  of  Johansen,  who  was 
with  Dr.  Nansen  in  his  famous  sledge  journey  of  '97,  and  seven 
others.  After  coffee  and  a  walk  round  the  camp  Amundsen 
and  two  others  returned  with  us  and  had  lunch  in  the  Terra 
Nova. 


FACE    OF   A    GLACIER    IN    VICTORIA    LAND 


*± 


DUGDALE    GLACIER 


i9ii]  TOWARD    CAPE   ADARE  59 

We  left  early  in  the  afternoon,  and  after  sounding  and 
dredging  in  the  bay,  proceeded  west  along  the  Barrier,  of  which 
there  still  remained  nearly  100  miles  we  had  not  seen. 

Outside  the  bay  we  were  unlucky  enough  to  pick  up  a  S.W. 
wind,  but  with  clear  weather  we  kept  close  along  the  Barrier 
edge  to  long.  1700  W.,  where  we  had  left  it  on  our  way  east, 
without  seeing  any  inlet  or  possible  place  to  land.  This  was  a 
great  disappointment  to  us  all,  but  there  was  nothing  for  it  but 
to  return  to  McMurdo  Sound  to  communicate  with  the  main 
party  and  then  try  and  effect  a  landing  in  the  vicinity  of  Smith's 
Inlet  or  as  far  to  the  westward  as  possible  on  the  north  coast 
of  Victoria  Land,  and  if  possible  to  explore  the  unknown  coast 
west  of  Cape  North. 

We  therefore  made  the  best  of  our  way  to  Cape  Evans,  and 
in  spite  of  a  moderate  S.W.  gale  arrived  on  the  evening  of 
the  8th. 

Here  I  decided  to  land  the  two  ponies,  as  they  would  be 
very  little  use  to  us  on  the  mountainous  coast  of  Victoria  Land, 
and  in  view  of  the  Norwegian  expedition  I  felt  the  Southern 
Party  would  require  all  the  transport  available. 

After  landing  the  ponies  we  steamed  up  to  the  sea  ice  by 
Glacier  Tongue,  and  from  there,  taking  Priestley  and  Abbott, 
I  went  with  letters  to  leave  at  Hut  Point,  where  the  Depot 
Party  would  call  on  their  way  back.  The  surface  was  good  and 
we  got  back  to  the  ship  about  3  A.M.,  and  then  proceeded  to 
water  ship  at  Glacier  Tongue.  While  watering  ship  an  accident 
occurred  which  might  have  been  serious.  The  ship  was  secured 
alongside,  and  Abbott  was  just  stepping  ashore  when  a  large 
piece  of  ice  broke  away  with  him  on  it  and  fell  between  the 
ship  and  the  ice  edge.  Luckily  he  was  not  hurt,  and  was  soon 
pulled  on  board  again,  none  the  worse,  except  for  a  ducking. 

By  8  o'clock  in  the  evening  of  the  9th  we  were  all  ready,  and 
proceeded  north  with  a  fair  S.E.  wind,  but  thick  snow. 

During  the  afternoon  of  February  12th  the  wind  freshened 
into  a  gale  with  heavy  snow,  and  not  wanting  to  close  Cape 
Adare  in  such  thick  weather  we  hove  to  under  main  lower 
topsail  with  Cape  Adare  bearing  N.W.,  distant  20  miles. 

During  the  night  the  wind  increased,  and  continued  blowing 
a  very  heavy  gale  until  the  evening  of  the  15th.  In  spite  of  the 
very  heavy  sea  the  ship  was  fairly  dry,  but  being  so  light  we 


60  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

took  a  lot  of  ice  water,  washing  away  the  bulwarks  we  had  re- 
paired since  the  previous  gale. 

The  coal  question  was  becoming  serious;  if  this  went  on 
much  longer  it  looked  as  if  we  should  not  be  able  to  land,  as 
Pennell  had  to  keep  enough  coal  to  get  back  to  New  Zealand. 

On  the  evening  of  the  15th  the  wind  eased  a  little,  and  by 
10  A.M.  on  the  1 6th  we  raised  steam  and  shaped  course  for  Cape 
Adare,  which  was  now  no  miles  to  the  S.W.  It  came  on  to 
blow  hard  again  from  the  S.E.  in  the  afternoon,  but  we  were 
able  nearly  to  lay  our  course  under  lower  topsails;  the  snow 
squalls  were  very  thick,  but  luckily  not  much  ice  was  sighted. 
Late  in  the  afternoon  the  weather  cleared  and  we  sighted  the 
mountainous  coast  of  Victoria  Land.  During  the  night  we  got 
among  a  lot  of  weathered  bergs  and  loose  pack,  which  had  the 
effect  of  smoothing  the  sea. 

At  4  A.M.  on  the  17th  we  were  within  about  2  miles  of  the 
coast  just  east  of  Smith's  Inlet. 

The  land  here  was  heavily  glaciated,  hardly  a  rock  showing, 
except  some  high  cliffs  and  the  Lyall  Islands  to  the  westward. 

Heavy  pack  lay  to  the  west  of  us,  so  we  had  to  work  along 
to  the  eastward,  where  the  sea  was  fairly  clear  of  ice. 

Some  large  floes  lay  close  in  under  the  cliffs,  grinding  up 
against  them  in  the  heavy  swell  that  was  running.  I  was  very 
much  disappointed  at  seeing  no  piedmont  to  work  along  on  the 
western  sledge  journey.  The  cliffs  were  several  hundred  feet 
high  except  where  the  glaciers  ran  down,  the  front  of  these  being 
from  50  to  180  feet  high. 

We  worked  along  to  the  eastward,  keeping  as  close  as  we 
could,  and  keeping  a  good  lookout  for  a  possible  landing. 

The  scenery  was  magnificent.  In  the  afternoon  we  entered 
Robertson  Bay  and  found  we  had  a  strong  tide  with  us,  which 
was  fortunate  as  the  wind  had  freshened  again  from  the  S.S.E. 
The  scenery  here  was  even  wilder,  the  Admiralty  Range  tower- 
ing over  our  heads  and  so  steep  that,  except  in  the  valleys,  no 
snow  or  ice  was  able  to  lodge,  and  bare  rocks  showed  every- 
where. 

Large  glaciers  filled  all  the  valleys,  but  the  gradient  was 
so  steep  that  they  were  heavily  crevassed  from  top  to  bottom. 

By  5  o'clock  we  were  off  the  Dugdale  Glacier,  which  runs 
out  in  three  long  tongues,  in  places  only  10  feet  high. 


i 


i9ii]  LANDING  6 1 

It  appeared  to  have  altered  considerably  since  Borchgre- 
vink's  time,  as  he  charts  only  one  long  tongue.  It  was  not  a 
good  place  for  wintering,  the  surface  being  crevassed  and  the 
sides  too  steep  to  be  climbed;  the  ice  tongue  would  have  been 
a  good  place  to  lie  alongside  and  land  stores,  but  as  some  of 
this  broke  away  and  drifted  out  to  sea  a  week  later,  it  was  as 
well  we  did  not  try. 

After  having  a  look  at  Duke  of  York  Island  we  steamed 
up  to  the  head  of  the  bay,  but  with  no  better  success.  So 
about  midnight  we  turned  and  made  for  Ridley  Beach,  a  tri- 
angular beach  on  the  west  side  of  Cape  Adare,  the  place  where 
the  Southern  Cross  Party  wintered  in  1900. 

I  was  very  much  against  wintering  here,  as  until  the  ice 
forms  in  Robertson  Bay  one  is  quite  cut  off  from  any  sledging 
operations  on  the  mainland,  for  the  cliffs  of  the  peninsula  descend 
sheer  into  the  sea. 

Pennell,  however,  had  only  just  enough  coal  as  it  was  to  get 
back  to  New  Zealand,  so  at  3  A.M.  on  the  18th  we  anchored  off 
the  south  shore  of  the  beach  and  commenced  landing  stores. 
A  cold,  wet  job  it  was.  A  lot  of  loose  ice  round  the  shore  and 
a  surf  made  it  difficult  for  the  boats  to  get  in;  the  water  shoaled 
some  way  out,  which  meant  wading  backwards  and  forwards 
with  the  stores,  while  several  times  the  boats  broached  to  as  they 
touched  and  half  swamped.  We  worked  from  3  A.M.  till  mid- 
night, and  started  again  at  4  A.M.  on  Sunday. 

The  way  everyone  behaved  was  splendid,  Davies  the  car- 
penter in  particular  working  at  the  hut  for  48  hours  on  end. 
Communication  with  the  ship  was  twice  cut  off  by  heavy  pack 
setting  into  the  bay. 

By  4  a.m.  Monday  everything  was  landed,  the  ship  party 
re-embarked,  and  the  ship  proceeded  north,  while  we  of  the 
shore  party,  who  were  all  dead  tired,  turned  in  for  a  few  hours' 
sleep.  One  of  Borchgrevink's  huts  was  standing,  but  was  half 
full  of  snow;  the  other  one  had  no  roof  and  had  evidently  been 
used  as  a  nesting  place  by  generations  of  penguins.  After  clear- 
ing out  the  snow  of  the  former  we  had  quite  comfortable  quar- 
ters while  we  built  our  own  hut.  With  the  exception  of  the 
2 1  st,  when  we  had  a  mild  blizzard,  we  had  fine  weather  for 
building  the  hut,  for  which  we  were  very  thankful,  as  that,  and 
carrying  up  all  the  stores,  proved  a  long  job  for  a  small  party. 


62  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [March 

We  used  to  start  work  every  morning  at  6,  and  knock  off  be- 
tween 8  and  9  every  evening,  by  which  time  we  were  pretty 
tired. 

By  an  oversight  only  two  hammers  had  been  landed,  so  four 
unfortunates  had  to  use  Priestley's  geological  hammers.  These 
are  heavy,  square-headed  implements,  designed  to  chip,  and 
judging  by  our  mangled  fingers  the  man  who  made  them  knew 
his  business.  We  had  rather  a  shock  on  Friday,  when  on  ex- 
amining the  fifteen  carcases  of  frozen  mutton  left  by  the  ship 
we  found  them  to  be  covered  with  green  mould. 

They  must  have  been  in  this  condition  on  board,  as  we 
buried  them  in  the  ice  as  soon  as  they  were  landed;  anyhow 
we  had  to  condemn  them,  to  the  great  delight  of  the  skua 
gulls;  but  penguins  and  seals  are  plentiful,  so  we  shall  not  be 
short  of  fresh  meat. 

While  at  work  on  the  Saturday  we  heard  a  loud  report  up 
at  the  head  of  the  bay,  and  through  our  glasses  we  could  see 
that  a  large  piece  of  the  Dugdale  Glacier  tongue  had  broken 
off. 

By  working  late  Saturday  night  we  had  the  outside  of  the 
hut  ready  and  the  guys  set  up,  so  on  Sunday  we  had  a  wash 
and  change  of  clothes,  church  in  the  forenoon  and  a  day  off, 
which  gave  us  an  opportunity  for  a  look  round. 

The  view  is  magnificent:  to  the  southward  we  see  the  Ad- 
miralty Range  of  mountains,  with  Mts.  Sabine,  Minto  and 
Adam  rising  to  over  10,000  feet;  away  to  the  west  the  moun- 
tains are  not  so  high,  but  completely  snow-covered,  and  slope 
gradually  down  to  Cape  North;  behind  us  are  the  black  basalt 
cliffs  of  the  Cape  Adare  Peninsula,  and  in  one  place  there  is 
quite  an  easy  way  to  the  top.  When  we  landed  we  found 
Borchgrevink's  hut  inhabited  by  a  solitary  moulting  penguin. 
He  was  very  indignant  at  being  turned  out  and  stood  all  day 
at  the  door  scolding  us.  He  also  did  showman  to  the  crowds 
of  sightseers  who  came  to  watch  us.  I  am  afraid  many  of 
the  sightseers  got  knocked  on  the  head  and  put  in  the  ice  house. 
It  is  brutal  work,  for  they  are  such  friendly  little  beasts,  and  take 
such  an  interest  in  us,  but  they  and  the  seals  are  our  only  fresh 
meat. 

Sunday,  March  5. — We  have  put  in  a  good  week's  work, 
thanks  to  fine  weather.     The  hut  was  ready  and  we  moved  in 


i9ii]  MEAT    STORES  63 

last  night,  and  celebrated  the  occasion  with  a  great  house 
warming.  We  have  also  had  time  to  put  up  the  meteorological 
screen  and  dig  a  beautiful  ice  house  in  a  small  stranded  berg 
on  the  south  shore.  Unfortunately,  the  day  after  the  larder  was 
filled  a  big  surf  came  rolling  in  and  the  berg  began  to  break 
up.  We  had  only  just  time  to  rescue  the  forty  penguins  with 
which  we  had  stocked  it,  and  carry  the  little  corpses  to  a  near 
ice  house  built  of  empty  cases  filled  with  ice  and  well  out  of 
reach  of  the  sea.  The  whole  beach  we  are  on  is  a  penguin 
rookery  in  summer,  and  has  been  so  for  generations.  We  are 
constantly  reminded  of  it,  in  fact  so  forcibly  is  this  so  inside 
the  hut,  that  before  putting  down  the  floor  Levick  dressed  the 
ground  with  bleaching-powder.  He  did  this  so  thoroughly,  and 
inhaled  so  much  of  the  gas,  that  he  had  to  retire  to  his  bunk 
blind  in  both  eyes,  with  a  bad  sore  throat,  and  all  the  symptoms 
of  a  heavy  cold  in  his  head. 

This  afternoon  Abbott,  Priestley,  Levick,  and  I  climbed  to 
the  top  of  Cape  Adare,  and  certainly  the  view  over  the  bay  was 
lovely,  the  east  side  of  the  peninsula  descending  in  a  sheer 
cliff  to  the  Ross  Sea.  We  collected  some  fine  bits  of  quartz 
and  erratic  boulders  about  1000  feet  up,  and  Levick  got  some 
good  photographs  of  the  Admiralty  Range.  On  the  way  down 
I  found  some  green  alga  on  the  rocks. 

Monday,  March  6. — We  set  to  work  on  the  coal  and  stores 
and  carried  everything  up  to  the  hut,  stacking  them  on  the 
weather  side. 

We  have  now  settled  down  into  a  regular  routine;  we  turn 
out  at  7  a.m.,  have  breakfast  at  8  a.m.,  dinner  at  1  p.m.,  and 
supper  at  7  p.m. 

The  weather  is  fairly  fine,  the  temperature  keeping  be- 
tween 1 8°  and  200  F.,  but  with  a  cold  east  wind.  Loose  pack 
sets  into  the  bay  with  the  flood  and  drifts  out  with  the  ebb 
tide. 

March  9. — We  had  a  most  magnificent  surf  breaking  on 
the  western  shore  over  a  fringe  of  grounded  pack,  throwing 
spray  and  bits  of  ice  30  or  40  feet  into  the  air. 

On  the  nth  and  12th  we  had  our  first  blizzard  with  heavy 
drift  and  the  hut  shook  a  little,  but  nothing  gave  way.  The 
remaining  penguins  began  gathering  in  parties  on  the  sea  shore, 
which  looked  as  though  they  were  going  to  leave  us  for  the 


64  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [April 

winter;  we  had  now  120  penguins  and  4  seals  in  the  ice  house, 
which  should  be  sufficient  for  the  winter.  All  manner  of  bergs 
drift  past  our  beach,  and  it  is  interesting  to  note  the  difference 
in  the  buoyancy  between  the  two  types  of  berg — the  glacier- 
formed  iceberg  and  the  barrier  berg  composed  chiefly  or  wholly 
of  neve.  In  one  instance  a  glacier  berg  about  70  or  80  feet 
high  grounded  off  our  beach  in  36  fathoms,  and  a  few  days 
after  a  barrier  berg  of  similar  height  drifted  past  well  inside 
the  former. 

March  19. — A  week  of  snow  and  drift,  with  very  little  sun. 

This  morning  about  seven  o'clock  it  came  on  to  blow  from 
the  S.E:,  with  lots  of  drift.  Our  anemometer  registered  wind 
at  84  miles  an  hour  and  then  broke;  some  of  the  squalls  after 
this  must  have  been  of  hurricane  force.  The  dome  tent  which 
I  had  up  for  magnetic  observations  was  blown  away,  and  we 
never  saw  a  sign  of  it  again.  The  wind  eased  in  the  evening,  but 
blew  a  gale  all  night. 

A  very  big  sea  was  breaking  on  the  south  shore,  the  spray 
being  carried  right  across  the  peninsula,  coating  our  hut  with 
ice.  During  the  heavier  squalls  it  was  impossible  to  stand.  The 
hut  shook  a  great  deal,  but  beyond  a  few  things  being  shaken 
off  the  shelves  no  damage  was  done. 

The  following  day  was  lovely,  and  we  had  a  fine  aurora  in 
the  evening.  An  arc  of  yellow  stretched  from  N.W.  to  N.E., 
while  a  green  and  red  curtain  extended  from  the  N.W.  horizon 
to  the  zenith. 

On  March  27  we  launched  the  'pram/  which  is  a  Nor- 
wegian skiff,  and  tried  trawling  off  the  south  shore,  but  did  not 
do  very  well,  our  total  catch  being  one  sea  louse,  one  sea  slug, 
and  one  spider;  certainly  the  fishermen,  Priestley,  Browning, 
and  Dickason,  had  plenty  of  difficulties  to  contend  with,  as  the 
sea  ice  was  forming  so  fast  that  they  were  compelled  to  spend 
most  of  their  time  breaking  a  passage  through  it. 

March  30. — We  had  another  wonderful  aurora  display  this 
evening.  It  was  like  a  great  curtain  of  light  shaken  by  a  wind, 
the  lower  edges  being  a  red  colour. 

April  9. — The  last  week  has  been  calm  and  snowy,  and 
young  ice  is  forming  very  quickly  on  the  south  shore,  but  on  the 
north  shore  where  there  is  more  swell  the  sea  keeps  fairly  open. 
The  whole  shore  since  the  last  gale  is  piled  with  enormous  blocks 


t'W  ..-■■-■■ 


. 


SKUA    GULLS    FIGHTING    OVER    SOME    BLUBBER 


PENGUINS    JUMPING    ON    TO    THE    ICE-FOOT 


i9ii]  KAYAKS    BUILT  65 

of  ice,  15  to  20  feet  square,  and  as  many  of  them  are  glacier 
ice  we  find  them  most  useful  for  our  drinking  water. 

One  of  the  problems  of  our  spring  journey  along  the  coast 
is  how  we  are  going  to  get  back  if  the  ice  goes  out,  or  even 
get  over  the  big  lanes  that  are  sure  to  open  in  the  spring,  so  I 
have  decided  to  build  two  kayaks,  by  making  canvas  boats  to  fit 
round  the  sledges;  these  can  be  carried  on  the  sledges  when 
travelling  over  the  ice  and  the  sledge  fitted  in  them  when  cross- 
ing open  water. 

April  17. — The  first  kayak  was  finished  last  Thursday  and 
the  canvas  dressed  with  hot  blubber,  but  owing  to  a  week  of 
winds  we  had  not  been  able  to  try  her  until  to-day.  She  proved 
a  great  success.  I  made  the  first  cruise  in  her  along  the  north 
shore,  using  a  bamboo  as  a  paddle;  she  was  not  at  all  crank 
and  carried  me  easily.  We  will  build  another,  so  that  by  lash- 
ing the  two  together  we  should  have  a  very  seaworthy  craft. 

May  2. — A  lovely  day,  and  as  the  second  kayak  was  ready 
we  tried  her.  I  have  given  her  more  freeboard  than  the  last,  and 
she  is,  if  anything,  more  seaworthy. 

The  temperature,  which  had  been  steadily  dropping  all  last 
month,  is  now  at  about  -  70  F.,  very  pleasant  in  calm  weather, 
but  in  the  winds  most  of  us  have  had  our  faces  frostbitten. 

It  is  wonderful  how  quickly  the  time  is  passing.  I  suppose 
it  is  our  regular  routine,  and  the  fact  of  all  having  plenty  to  do. 

Levick  is  photographer,  microbiologist,  and  stores  officer. 
His  medical  duties  have  been  nil,  with  the  exception  of  stopping 
one  of  my  teeth,  a  most  successful  operation;  but  as  he  had 
been  flensing  a  seal  a  few  days  before,  his  fingers  tasted  strongly 
of  blubber! 

Priestley's  geology  keeps  him  wandering  on  the  top  or  on 
the  slopes  of  Cape  Adare,  and  he  certainly  gets  more  exercise 
than  any  of  us. 

He  is  also  meteorologist,  and  when  he  does  have  any  spare 
moments  is  out  with  the  trawl  or  fish  trap. 

I  am  doing  a  survey  of  Cape  Adare  and  the  magnetic 
observations. 

Abbott  is  carpenter  and  has  the  building  of  the  kayaks. 

Browning  is  assistant  meteorologist  and  his  special  care  is 
the  acetylene  gas  plant,  a  thankless  task,  as  any  escape  of  gas 
or  bad  light  brings  a  certain  amount  of  criticism. 

vol.  11 — 5 


66  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [May 

Dickason  has  proved  himself  a  most  excellent  cook  and 
baker,  while  the  '  galley  '  is  a  model  of  neatness. 

The  following  was  our  daily  routine  during  the  winter: 

At  7  A.M.  we  turned  out,  one  hand  going  down  to  the  ice 
foot  to  get  ice  for  cooking  purposes.  A  number  of  empty 
cases  were  kept  full  of  ice  in  the  '  lean  to  '  outside  the  hut  for 
use  during  blizzards  when  we,  could  not  get  down  to  the  ice 
foot.  Breakfast  was  at  8  A.M.,  and  consisted  of  porridge,  seal 
steak  or  bacon,  and  tea.  After  breakfast  we  would  turn  to  at 
our  various  jobs  and  worked  till  i  p.m.,  when  we  had  a  cold 
lunch,  bread  and  cheese  and  sometimes  sardines,  then  work  again 
until  4  p.m.,  when  we  had  tea.  After  tea  we  cleared  up  decks, 
and  then  the  rest  of  the  day  everyone  had  to  himself. 

Dinner  was  at  7  P.M.,  and  was  usually  seal  or  penguin,  pud- 
ding, and  dessert.  After  dinner  hardly  a  night  passed  without 
a  gramophone  concert. 

Saturday  morning  was  devoted  to  a  good  soap  and  water 
scrub  of  the  whole  hut,  everyone  piling  their  belongings  on 
their  beds,  Saturday  afternoon  being  '  made  and  mend/ 

Sunday  breakfast  was  at  9  A.M.  to  give  the  cook  a  lie  in,  and 
every  week  church  was  held  at  10.30  a.m. 

In  fine  weather  Sunday  was  a  great  day  for  a  long  walk, 
either  over  the  sea  ice  or  up  Cape  Adare. 

During  the  week  everyone  had  a  washing  day,  when  he 
had  a  bath  and  washed  his  clothes,  clothes  lines  being  rigged 
across  the  hut. 

Of  the  two  huts  left  by  Sir  George  Newnes'  expedition  in 
1899,  one  hut  was  standing  in  fairly  good  condition,  the  other 
was  roofless.  The  former  we  repaired,  and  it  made  a  very  good 
workshop,  while  the  latter,  after  clearing  out  and  roofing  with 
a  tarpaulin,  we  turned  into  a  store  house.  Taking  it  all  round 
we  were  a  very  happy  and  contented  little  community,  but  as 
a  wintering  station  Cape  Adare  is  not  good,  being  cut  off  from 
the  mainland  until  June,  when  the  sea  ice  can  be  trusted  not 
to  go  out  in  a  blizzard. 

The  sea  ice  has  been  forming  in  Robertson  Bay  for  the  last 
week,  and  now  we  are  able  to  walk  several  miles  to  the  south- 
ward. To  the  northward  of  our  beach  is  a  lot  of  open  water, 
owing  to  the  strong  tidal  streams  off  Cape  Adare. 

On  May  5  began  our  longest  and  hardest  blow,  lasting  with 


.,,.  .  . 


Wn* 


LAUNCH    OF   THE    PRAM 


CAMPBELL   AND    PRIESTLEY    AFLOAT    ON    PANCAKE    ICE 


i9ii]  GALES  67 

occasional  lulls  until  the  14th.  The  morning  was  overcast,  with 
a  cold  southerly  wind,  and  when  I  was  out  for  a  walk  with 
Levick  we  both  got  our  noses  frostbitten.  In  the  evening  a 
strong  gale  blew  with  drift,  and  between  1  and  4  a.m.  on  the 
6th  the  squalls  were  of  hurricane  force. 

The  hut  shook  and  creaked,  but  stood  up  to  it  all  right, 
though  some  of  the  ruberoid  on  the  roof  was  ripped  off,  a  heavy 
ladder  blown  some  way  to  leeward,  and  the  outer  wall  of  our 
porch,  made  of  cases  and  boards,  blown  in.  In  the  forenoon  the 
wind  eased  a  little  and  we  were  able  to  get  out  and  secure  what 
we  could.  The  squalls  were  still  so  fierce  it  was  impossible 
to  stand  in  them,  and  one  had  to  '  heave  to  '  on  hands  and  knees 
until  they  passed. 

All  the  sea  ice  had  gone  out,  although  it  was  over  2  feet 
thick,  and  on  the  8th  the  gale  freshened  again,  and  during  the 
night  the  squalls  were  as  hard  as  any  we  had  had,  stones  and 
pebbles  rattling  against  the  hut.  On  the  9th  it  eased  a  little, 
but  blew  a  whole  gale  until  Saturday  13th,  when  the  wind 
dropped.  The  peninsula  had  been  swept  bare  of  snow,  but  the 
beach  and  huts  were  covered  with  frozen  spray.  On  the  19th 
the  sun  left  us,  but  the  weather  improved,  being  clear  and  cold, 
while  the  temperature  dropped  to  below  zero  F.  By  May  28 
the  sea  ice  seemed  pretty  solid  all  round  us,  the  temperature 
being  -300  F.,  and  we  walked  but  to  the  'Sisters,'  two  pillar 
rocks  lying  off  Cape  Adare.  The  ice  here  showed  heavy  pres- 
sure. There  are  a  good  number  of  bergs  frozen  in  to  the  north- 
ward of  us. 

Now  the  winter  cold  had  set  in  we  were  obliged  to  rig  our 
second  stove  in  the  hut,  finding  it  impossible  to  keep  the  tem- 
perature of  the  hut  above  -  25 °  F. 

On  June  1  we  had  a  twenty-four  hours'  blizzard,  but  I  am 
thankful  to  say  the  sea  ice  held,  except  off  the  north  shore,  where 
it  was  driven  out  for  about  100  yards  along  the  beach. 

June  11. — We  have  had  a  week  of  the  most  glorious  calm 
and  clear  weather,  the  temperature  to-day  being  -  25 °  F. 

We  have  been  out  to  most  of  the  neighbouring  bergs,  and 
one  in  Robertson  Bay  has  the  most  wonderful  caves.  Levick 
got  some  very  good  photographs  of  these  with  flash  light.  Un- 
fortunately Priestley,  who  was  working  the  flash,  got  his  face 
badly  burnt. 


68  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [June 

We  have  felt  the  want  of  an  alarm  clock,  as  in  such  a  small 
party  it  seems  undesirable  that  anyone  should  have  to  remain 
awake  the  whole  night  to  take  the  2-4  A.M.  observations,  but 
Browning  has  come  to  the  rescue  with  a  wonderful  contrivance. 
It  consists  of  a  bamboo  spring  held  back  by  a  piece  of  cotton 
rove  through  a  candle  which  is  marked  off  in  hours.  The  other 
end  of  the  cotton  is  attached  to  the  trigger  of  the  gramophone, 
and  whoever  takes  the  midnight  observations  winds  the  gramo- 
phone, '  sets  '  the  cotton,  lights  the  candle,  and  turns  the  trumpet 
towards  Priestley,  who  has  to  turn  out  for  the  2  A.M.,  and  then 
turns  in  himself.  At  ten  minutes  to  two  the  candle  burns  the 
thread  and  releases  the  bamboo  spring,  which  being  attached 
to  the  trigger  starts  the  gramophone  in  the  sleeper's  ear,  and 
he  turns  out  and  stops  the  tune.  This  arrangement  works  beauti- 
fully, and  can  be  timed  to  five  minutes. 

Other  things  we  should  have  brought  are  fencing  masks  and 
foils.  As  it  is,  Abbott  has  manufactured  some  helmets  out  of 
old  flour  tins  and  also  some  bamboo  sabres,  and  there  have  been 
desperate  encounters  out  on  the  snow. 

The  prismatic  skies  we  get  during  the  day  now  are  perfectly 
lovely,  and  last  night  we  had,  I  think,  the  best  coloured  aurora 
we  have  seen.  It  was  a  great  curtain  across  the  northern  sky, 
the  colours  being  red,  green,  and  yellow. 

This  spell  of  fine  weather  continued  until  June  18,  when 
the  glaciers  were  obscured  with  drift,  and  we  could  hear  the 
rumbling  of  pressure  on  the  other  side  of  Cape  Adare,  a  sure 
sign  of  wind,  although  with  us  it  was  still  quite  calm. 

We  counted  twenty-six  seals  along  the  tide  crack  to-day, 
whereas  for  some  weeks  before  we  had  not  seen  any. 

June  19. — Last  night  about  8  it  came  on  to  blow  a  full  gale, 
with  heavy  drift  and  squalls  of  hurricane  force.  The  hut  worked 
a  good  deal  and  some  of  the  outer  planking  was  ripped  off.  It 
was  my  turn  for  the  midnight  rounds,  and  I  got  my  nose  rather 
badly  frostbitten,  so  to-day  it  is  one  big  blister. 

On  the  morning  of  the  20th  the  wind  went  down  and  we 
were  able  to  repair  the  hut.  The  sea  ice  stood  the  blizzard 
well,  but  again  it  had  been  forced  back  about  a  hundred  yards 
from  the  north  shore. 

On  June  22  we  celebrated  Midwinter  Day  with  the  usual 
festivities. 


CAMPBELL   AFLOAT    IN    A    KAYAK 


ms*mn 


:0 
THE    TWO    KAYAKS    ASHORE 


i9ii]  ROBERTSON    BAY  69 

July  10. — The  days  are  already  a  little  lighter,  and  we  are 
making  ready  our  sledging  equipment,  for  on  the  28th  of  this 
month  I  propose  making  an  expedition  into  Robertson  Bay  for 
a  week  to  see  what  sort  of  surface  to  expect  up  the  coast,  the 
pressure  all  round  our  beach  and  Cape  Adare  being  very  bad. 

We  have  seen  several  Antarctic  petrels,  and  it  is  hard  to 
account  for  these  birds  down  here  in  the  middle  of  winter,  unless 
there  is  open  water  a  little  north  of  us. 

July  29. — Priestley,  Abbott,  and  I  left  the  hut  for  our  short 
expedition  into  Robertson  Bay. 

Taking  provisions  for  a  fortnight,  we  left  about  8  A.M.,  when 
it  was  beginning  to  get  light.  The  surface  was  appalling,  and  in 
spite  of  our  light  sledge  (400  lbs.)  it  took  us  three  days  to 
reach  Duke  of  York  Island,  a  distance  of  22  miles  by  the  route 
we  took  to  avoid  the  bad  pressure.  The  salt-flecked  smooth  ice, 
being  very  sticky,  was  much  heavier  going  even  than  the  pres- 
sure ice. 

We  spent  a  day  at  Duke  of  York  Island  collecting,  and 
started  back  at  daybreak,  August  2.  During  the  day  the  weather 
looked  so  threatening  I  made  for  the  cliffs  just  south  of  Warn- 
ing Glacier  to  get  some  shelter  in  case  of  a  blizzard.  We  got 
some  heavy  squalls  and  drift  in  the  afternoon,  which  nearly  made 
us  camp,  but  keeping  on  we  reached  land  about  5.30,  camping 
between  two  high  pressure  ridges  under  the  cliffs.  The  noise  of 
the  wind  in  the  bay  was  terrific,  and  we  were  thankful  to  have  got 
some  shelter.  After  supper  we  turned  in,  and  being  tired  after 
our  hard  pull  were  soon  asleep.  I  was  awakened  about  9  p.m. 
by  a  tremendous  din,  and  found  the  lee  skirting  of  the  tent  had 
blown  out  from  under  the  heavy  ice  blocks  we  had  piled  on  it, 
and  the  tent  poles  were  bending  under  the  weight  of  wind.  We 
just  had  time  to  roll  out  of  our  bags  and  hang  on  to  the  skirting 
or  the  tent  would  have  gone.  Taking  advantage  of  a  lull  we  got 
out  and  piled  more  ice  on  the  skirting,  but  even  that  was  not 
enough,  and  we  spent  a  miserable  night  hanging  on  to  the  skirt- 
ing of  the  tent.  The  blizzard  dropped  by  noon  the  next  day, 
and  by  one  o'clock  we  were  off  again,  camping  at  5.30,  when 
it  was  too  dark  to  go  on. 

Starting  again  just  before  daybreak  on  the  4th,  we  reached 
the  hut  the  same  evening.  The  temperatures  we  experienced 
were  not  low,  the  lowest  being  -  26-8°  F. 


70  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [August 

The  chief  result  of  this  journey  was  to  show  that  we  must 
expect  very  bad  travelling  surfaces  up  the  coast  and  that  I  must 
alter  my  original  plan,  which  was  to  start  about  August  20  with 
two  units  of  three.  I  now  saw  that  it  would  take  a  party  of 
four  to  get  along  over  the  pressure  ice  we  must  expect,  so  I  de- 
cided to  take  Priestley,  Abbott,  and  Dickason  with  six  weeks' 
provisions  and  do  without  a  supporting  party,  leaving  Levick 
and  Browning  to  carry  on  the  work  at  Cape  Adare. 

August  8. — Levick,  Priestley,  Browning,  and  Dickason  left 
this  morning  for  Warning  Glacier  to  do  geology.  We  had 
depoted  our  outfit  about  10  miles  down  the  coast,  only  packing 
our  sleeping-bags,  so  they  were  able  to  go  without  a  sledge, 
taking  their  sleeping-bags  on  their  backs.  I  remained  at  the  hut 
with  Abbott,  who  was  laid  up  with  water  on  the  knee,  and  I 
was  kept  busy  by  the  combined  duties  of  cook  and  bottle-washer, 
meteorologist,  etc. 

August  10. — Levick's  party  returned  at  4  P.M.,  bringing  in 
all  our  equipment.  They  had  had  overcast  weather  and  high 
temperatures,  and  Levick  had  only  been  able  to  get  six  photo- 
graphs, which  were  not  good. 

August  16. — We  woke  up  this  morning  to  find  the  ice  had 
gone  out  in  the  night.  This  was  a  bitter  disappointment  and  a 
blow  to  all  my  hopes  of  a  western  journey  over  the  sea  ice — 
the  only  comfort  is  that  it  came  when  it  did,  as  had  it  come  a 
fortnight  later,  we  should  have  gone  out  with  it.  Yesterday 
a  strong  blizzard  began  to  blow  from  the  S.E.,  with  lots  of  drift, 
and  the  gale  continued  very  hard  all  day.  About  8  p.m.  it  lulled 
a  little,  only  to  come  on  again  with  redoubled  violence  between 
10  P.M.  and  midnight. 

The  squalls  were  terrific,  harder  than  anything  we  had  yet 
experienced,  shaking  the  hut  so  that  several  things  fell  off  the 
shelves.  The  roof  of  our  store  house  was  torn  off,  and  the  two 
gable  ends  which  took  all  six  of  us  to  lift  were  slung  about  20 
yards  away. 

This  morning  the  water  extended  from  our  beach  to  the 
coast  of  the  mainland  a  little  west  of  the  Dugdale  Glacier,  and 
as  far  as  we  could  see  to  the  westward. 

Three  Antarctic  and  two  snowy  petrels,  attracted  no  doubt 
by  the  open  water,  were  flying  about  the  beach. 

On  the  17th,  Levick,  Priestley,  and  I  climbed  Cape  Adare 


•  -jf .t?'V  ;  v.  - 


HANSEN  S  GRAVE  ON  CAPE  ADARE 


CLEARING  DRIFT  FROM  WINDOW  OF  HUT  AT  CAPE  ADARE 


i9ul  EXPEDITION    PREPARING  71 

to  see  the  ice  conditions  in  the  Ross  Sea  after  the  gale.  Large 
stretches  of  open  water  lay  to  the  S.E.  and  east,  while  small 
pools  and  lanes  were  very  numerous  on  the  northern  horizon, 
and  a  heavy  bank  of  fog  or  mist  seemed  to  indicate  a  lot  of  open 
water  there.  To  the  S.W.  across  Robertson  Bay  the  open  water 
appeared  to  reach  right  up  to  the  cliffs  of  the  mainland,  but  the 
day  was  not  very  clear,  and  it  was  hard  to  make  out  distinctly 
if  there  was  a  strip  of  fast  ice  along  the  coast. 

August  21. — A  lovely  clear  day.  We  went  up  Cape  Adare 
again  to  see  the  ice  conditions  to  the  westward.  Owing  to  the 
young  ice  over  the  open  water  it  was  hard  to  make  out  if  there 
was  an  ice  foot  along  the  cliffs  of  the  mainland.  If  the  ice  re- 
mains in  I  shall  go  into  Robertson  Bay  early  in  September  to 
see  if  the  coast  journey  is  feasible,  for  our  only  other  alternative 
is  to  find  glaciers  leading  on  to  the  plateau. 

To  get  a  better  idea  of  the  gradient  of  these  I  climbed  about 
2500  feet  up  the  slopes  of  Cape  Adare,  and  the  result  was  not 
very  encouraging.  I  doubt  if  the  glaciers  in  Robertson  Bay  lead 
directly  to  the  plateau,  as  the  Admiralty  Range  rises  in  a  series 
of  unbroken  ridges  of  bare  rock  from  the  sea  to  apparently  far 
inland. 

Altogether  the  outlook  made  me  wish  more  than  ever  that 
the  ship  had  had  sufficient  coal  to  take  us  back  to  Wood  Bay. 

The  spell  of  fine  weather  lasted  till  the  30th,  allowing  thin 
ice  to  form  over  the  open  water,  except  in  some  pools  near  Cape 
Adare  which  the  current  seemed  to  keep  open.  The  night  of 
the  30th  a  blizzard  began,  with  heavy  drift,  some  of  the  squalls 
being  very  heavy  indeed,  but  it  moderated  towards  the  morning. 
The  new  ice  had  not  gone  out,  but  a  large  sheet  of  open  water 
was  visible  to  the  north,  while  along  the  northern  horizon  an 
open  water  sky  was  visible.  A  decided  swell  along  the  beach 
makes  me  certain  open  water  is  not  far  distant. 

September  7. — September  came  in  with  blizzards  which  pre- 
vented our  getting  away  as  early  as  we  wished.  Yesterday  and 
to-day,  however,  we  have  been  getting  sledges  and  outfit  over  the 
bad  pressure  ice  which  lies  to  the  southward  of  the  beach. 

We  are  taking  a  12-ft.  and  a  10-ft.  sledge,  the  latter  being 
on  iron  runners,  as  no  wooden  runners  would  stand  the  sharp 
edges  of  the  pressure  ice  for  long.  We  also  find  the  iron  run- 
ners, in  spite  of  the  40  lbs.  extra  weight,  run  much  better  over 


72  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [October 

the  salt-flecked  ice.  Once  over  the  pressure  we  packed  the  12-ft. 
sledge  and  secured  it  on  the  10-ft. 

Our  total  weight  including  sledges  amounts  to  1163  lbs. 

The  sledging  ration  we  are  taking  is  based  on  Shackleton's 
ration  adapted  for  coast  sledging. 

We  are  convoying  Levick  and  Browning  as  far  as  Warning 
Glacier,  where  the  former  is  going  to  take  photographs. 

September  22. — On  this  journey  the  surfaces  were  so  bad 
that  we  only  managed  to  reach  Cape  Barrow,  the  western  limit 
of  Robertson  Bay. 

After  our  return  we  experienced  a  spell  of  bad  weather  until 
the  22nd,  when  it  cleared,  so  Levick  started  off  again  for  Warn- 
ing Glacier  to  get  the  photographs  he  had  been  unable  to  take 
before. 

Priestley,  Browning,  and  Dickason  went  with  him,  and  the 
party  took  provisions  for  a  week. 

September  27. — Levick  and  his  party  returned  to-day  and 
reported  bad  weather  and  blizzards  nearly  the  whole  time.  They 
managed,  however,  to  get  a  few  photographs.  I  am  arranging 
to  start  on  our  western  journey  October  1.  Levick  and  Browning 
will  come  as  far  as  Cape  Wood  to  take  photographs. 

October  3. — Weather  bound  until  to-day,  when,  the  weather 
clearing  in  the  afternoon,  we  transported  our  sledges  and  gear 
over  the  pressure  ice  lying  round  the  beach  and  left  them  three 
miles  south. 

October  4. — A  fine  morning,  so  after  a  5.30  breakfast  we 
started  away  with  our  sleeping-bags  on  our  backs,  and  picking 
up  our  sledges  made  pretty  good  progress  over  salt-flecked  ice 
with  occasional  belts  of  pressure. 

To  show  the  superiority  of  our  iron-runners  over  salt-flecked 
ice,  I  may  mention  that  two  of  us  pulled  the  iron-runner  sledge 
weighing  1000  lbs.  and  kept  ahead  of  Levick's  sledge  with  only 
200  lbs.  and  four  men  in  the  traces.  About  12  miles  out  we 
came  to  a  lot  of  pressure,  so  I  took  my  party  consisting  of 
Priestley,  Abbott,  and  Dickason  and  steered  for  Relay  Bay, 
telling  Levick  and  Browning  to  go  their  own  pace  and  make 
the  best  of  their  way  to  the  cave. 

We  camped  that  night  in  the  middle  of  Relay  Bay  and  after 
supper  pulled  the  iron-runner  sledge  and  depot  to  a  cave  dis- 
covered on  the  north  side  of  Point  Penelope  on  a  former  journey, 


-■■ 


A#! 


%*&&&&: 


THE    WARNING.         AN    ONCOMING    BLIZZARD 


SLOPE    OF    THE    WARNING    GLACIER 


i9ii]  DANGERS    OF    SIREN    BAY  73 

where  we  left  it,  as  this  sledge  is  no  use  in  deep  snow.  We 
found  Levick  had  just  arrived  all  right,  so  picking  up  our  ski 
and  a  few  things  we  had  left  there,  we  returned  to  camp.  The 
temperature  remains  -  15  °  F. 

A  lovely  morning  with  the  temperature  —  21  °  F. ;  we  were 
on  the  march  by  8.30  over  a  fairly  good  surface. 

In  the  afternoon  we  got  into  deep  snow  again  and  had  to 
put  on  ski;  we  had  fitted  each  ski  with  a  detachable  strip  of 
sealskin  which  made  pulling  on  them  much  easier.  We  camped 
that  night  4  miles  south  of  Cape  Wood,  after  picking  up  our 
12-ft.  sledge  and  depot  at  Birthday  Point.  Temperature 
-28°F. 

October  6. — The  morning  was  overcast  but  warmer,  the  tem- 
perature being  -  30  F.  To-day  we  reached  a  little  bay  north  of 
Cape  Barrow. 

After  supper  we  heard  an  extraordinary  noise  like  a  ship's 
siren,  which  I  suppose  must  have  been  a  seal,  but  none  of  us 
had  heard  anything  like  it  before.  During  the  night  we  were 
awakened  by  an  avalanche  falling  near  us,  but  we  were  not  near 
enough  to  the  cliff  to  be  in  danger. 

October  7. — We  made  a  depot  in  Siren  Bay,  leaving  one 
sledge  and  taking  on  the  12-ft.  sledge  and  four  weeks'  provisions. 
We  had  an  early  lunch  and  started.  By  keeping  some  way  from 
the  coast  we  got  into  fairly  good  surface,  but  I  noticed  round 
some  of  the  pressure  ridges  pools  of  very  new  ice,  while  some 
large  areas  of  flat  ice  appeared  to  have  been  recently  flooded, 
the  ice  being  dark  and  slushy. 

We  camped  at  6.30,  having  done  five  miles  since  noon.  In 
clearing  away  the  snow  for  the  tent  we  found  the  ice  brownish 
in  colour  and  quite  salt.  While  we  were  turning  in,  Priestley, 
who  was  in  his  bag,  heard  a  seal  gnawing  the  ice  just  under  his 
head  and  remarked  to  me  that  it  seemed  very  close,  so  I  sung 
out  to  Abbott  to  take  an  ice-axe  and  test  the  ice.  After  a  few 
blows  he  was  through  and  reported  the  ice  only  eight  inches  thick 
and  very  soft  and  sodden. 

We  turned  out  and  tried  several  places  with  the  same  result. 

Then  Priestley  and  I  went  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  towards 
the  land  and  tried  again  with  no  better  result.  Finally  we  found 
a  small  patch  where  the  ice  was  about  15  inches  thick  and  we 
shifted  camp. 


74  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [October 

Things  looked  serious,  for  the  season  was  becoming  advanced 
and  the  summer  thaw  approaching,  while  we  had  to  advance 
along  a  straight  coast  line  with  steep  cliffs  as  far  as  we  could 
see.  After  talking  over  the  situation  with  Priestley  we  decided 
that  unless  we  could  find  thicker  ice  near  the  land  we  should 
have  to  turn,  as  this  ice  might  break  up  any  time. 

It  was  a  bitter  disappointment,  for  I  had  expected  at  least 
to  be  able  to  get  beyond  Cape  North  this  way.  It  came  on  to 
blow  with  drift  in  the  night,  but  fortunately  the  wind  did  not 
last,  and  to  our  delight  on  turning  out  we  found  the  sun  breaking 
through. 

After  breakfast,  taking  ski  and  a  spade,  I  went  in  towards 
the  land,  trying  a  lot  of  places  and  always  finding  thin  sodden  ice; 
in  places  the  under  layers  of  snow  were  so  wet  and  soft  it  seemed 
as  though  the  ice  was  depressed  below  the  surface  of  the  sea. 

After  taking  a  round  of  angles  we  returned,  making  Siren 
Bay  the  same  night.  On  our  way  back  we  sounded  the  ice 
several  times,  finding  thin  ice  until  we  reached  the  tide  crack 
at  the  mouth  of  the  bay. 

October  9  and  10. — We  went  north  along  the  coast  on  ski, 
collecting  and  examining  the  face  of  the  glacier,  but  we  found 
no  place  where  it  was  possible  to  climb  up.  The  snow  along 
the  coast  was  very  soft  and  deep,  making  progress  difficult  even 
on  ski.  We  saw  a  good  number  of  snow  and  Antarctic  petrels 
circling  about  the  cliffs  as  if  they  nested  here. 

October   11. — The  temperature  when  we  turned   out  was 

-22-8°F. 

Our  only  chance  of  doing  anything  now  was  to  try  and 
get  up  on  one  of  the  glaciers,  and  although  we  had  seen  no 
accessible  place  on  our  outward  march,  we  decided  to  follow 
round  each  bay  and  examine  the  coast  closely.  To-day  we  re- 
turned to  Birthday  Point. 

October  12. — A  fine  morning;  I  got  a  round  of  angles  while 
Priestley  went  round  the  bay  on  ski.  We  saw  a  seal  near  the 
camp  which  had  just  given  birth. 

Our  noses  are  frostbitten  and  sunburnt  anil  are  a  curious 
sight.  They  have  swollen  very  much;  Abbott's  is  the  worst, 
being  one  great  blister.  I  had  an  attack  of  snow  blindness  in 
the  afternoon. 

October    13. — Temperature    -  i°  F.,    weather    thick,    with 


CAMP    IN    THE    CAVE    UNDER    PENELOPE    POINT 


LEVICK    OUTSIDE   CAMP   AT    PENELOPE    POINT 


i9i i]  CAVE   QUARTERS  75 

snow.  We  pulled  out  after  breakfast  and  made  for  Sphinx 
Rock,  where  we  camped  at  1.30,  just  in  time,  as  it  came  on  to 
blow  hard,  with  heavy  drift.  We  saw  several  seals  up  along 
the  side  crack. 

October  14. — Weather  bound  all  day  in  the  tent,  blowing  a 
blizzard,  with  heavy  drift,  impossible  to  see  five  yards. 

October  15. — The  wind  dropped  in  the  morning,  but  the 
weather  remained  overcast.  Priestley  went  collecting  and  taking 
photographs,  while  the  rest  of  us  took  one  sledge  half-way  over 
to  Point  Penelope,  as  our  load  was  very  big  after  picking  up 
the  depots. 

October  16. — Weather  overcast  and  snowing,  but  much 
warmer;  we  went  round  the  bay  collecting.  It  is  impossible  to 
get  on  to  any  of  the  glaciers  from  the  sea  ice,  as  they  are  all  wall 
faced. 

October  17. — After  getting  some  photographs  of  icebergs 
we  started  for  Point  Penelope.  The  forenoon  was  fine,  but  dur- 
ing our  halt  for  lunch  a  heavy  bank  of  cloud  worked  up  from 
the  N.,  and  soon  after  resuming  our  march  a  S.E.  wind  sprang 
up,  bringing  snow  and  drift.  The  weather  got  so  bad  we  had 
to  leave  one  sledge  about  a  mile  out,  and  got  into  camp  in  the 
cave  with  the  others  just  as  the  blizzard  came  on.  In  the  cave 
we  were  as  snug  as  could  be,  and  finding  some  seal  meat  Levick 
had  left,  put  it  in  the  hoosh  and  had  a  great  feed. 

October  19. — Temperature  zero.  Weather  very  thick.  We 
laid  out  a  depot  off  the  Dugdale  ice  tongue  which  will  do  for  our 
next  trip  into  Robertson  Bay. 

October  20. — Weather  very  thick;  land  on  the  other  side 
of  the  bay  being  obscured,  we  had  to  shape  course  by  compass 
to  Cape  Adare.  Starting  about  9,  we  pulled  through  the  fog, 
getting  into  rather  troublesome  pack,  till  one  o'clock,  when  we 
halted  for  lunch.  During  lunch  the  fog  lifted,  and  by  climbing 
a  berg  I  was  able  to  see  a  lead  of  smooth  ice  about  half  a  mile 
to  the  northward.  Getting  on  to  this  we  made  good  progress, 
arriving  back  at  the  hut  at  5  p.m.  A  good  many  seals  were  up, 
and  about  two  miles  from  home  we  came  on  the  first  party  of 
penguins. 

After  our  return  from  this  second  coast  trip  the  sea  ice 
became  too  rotten  to  be  trustworthy,  even  in  Robertson  Bay, 


76  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [January 

while  to  the  north  of  the  beach,  where  the  sweep  of  the  current 
was  exceptionally  strong,  the  various  open  water  patches  which 
had  been  present  since  August  rapidly  widened  and  coalesced, 
and  in  December  the  ice  both  east  and  west  of  the  cape  broke  out 
with  great  rapidity. 

Our  work,  therefore,  was  now  restricted  to  the  immediate 
confines  of  the  beach  and  the  peninsula  of  Cape  Adare,  and  this 
time  was  principally  occupied  in  taking  routine  observations  and 
adding  to  our  biological  collections. 

Amongst  the  specimens  collected  at  this  time  were  several 
fine  sea  leopards,  which  I  was  fortunate  enough  to  shoot  near 
the  rookery.  As  most  of  them  were  shot  in  the  water,  we  had 
some  difficulty  in  securing  the  bodies,  and  it  was  here  that  our 
kayaks  were  very  useful. 

We  could  carry  these  light  and  yet  seaworthy  craft  down 
to  the  ice  foot  and  launch  them,  and  from  them  slip  a  noose 
round  the  body  as  it  lay  on  the  bottom  in  two  or  three  fathoms 
of  water.  The  line  was  then  passed  ashore  and  the  united 
strength  of  the  party  just  sufficed  to  land  the  quarry. 

After  Christmas  a  permanent  camp  was  established  on  Cape 
Adare  and  we  were  divided  into  three  watches,  one  of  which 
was  always  stationed  on  top  of  the  cape  to  look  out  for  the 
ship.  During  one  of  these  watches  Priestley  and  Dickason 
walked  ten  miles  south  along  the  cape,  to  find  out  whether,  in  the 
event  of  the  ship  not  picking  us  up,  it  was  possible  for  us  to 
make  our  way  south  this  way.  They  report  the  cape  to  reach 
a  height  of  4200  feet  at  its  highest  point,  and  from  there  they 
were  able  to  get  a  good  view  of  Warning  Glacier  and  consider 
that  it  would  be  impossible  to  make  an  extended  journey  in  this 
direction. 

On  the  morning  of  January  4  Browning  sighted  the  ship 
and  signalled  us  on  the  beach  below  by  hoisting  a  flag  as  ar- 
ranged, and  two  days  later  all  our  gear  was  aboard  and  we 
were  on  our  way  to  try  our  fortune  two  or  three  hundred  miles 
farther  south  along  the  coast. 

January  8,  19 12.  P.M. — This  evening  Pennell  and  I  from 
the  crow's  nest  saw  open  water  behind  the  heavy  pack  we  had 
been  working  through  all  day.  I  had  given  up  hope  of  being 
able  to  land  at  Evans  Coves,  and  talking  it  over  with  Pennell 
had  just  decided  to  come  down  in  the  ship  and  pick  up  Debenham 


THE    HUT    AT    CAPE    ADARE 


THE    NORTHERN    PARTY    AT    CAPE   ADARE 
Left  to  right,  top — Abbott,  Dickason,  Browning 
,,  bottom — Priestley,  Campbell,  Levick 


i9i2]  TOWARDS    MT.    MELBOURNE  77 

first,  when  we  saw  the  open  water,  and  by  9  the  same  evening 
we  were  secured  alongside  the  sea  ice  about  i1/*  miles  from  the 
piedmont,  north  of  Evans  Coves.  It  was  a  lovely  evening,  and 
with  the  help  of  the  ship's  people  we  soon  had  our  outfit  on 
the  piedmont  by  a  big  moraine,  where  we  had  arranged  to  make 
our  depot,  and  be  picked  up  by  the  ship  on  February  18. 

Our  stores  were  six  weeks'  sledging  rations,  one  1 2-ft.  sledge 
(Priestley,  Dickason,  and  myself),  and  one  10-ft.  sledge  (Le- 
vick,  Abbott,  and  Browning).  In  addition  to  this  I  landed  a 
depot  consisting  of  seven  boxes  of  biscuits,  one  box  of  cocoa 
(24  tins),  one  box  of  chocolate  (36  lbs.),  one  box  of  sugar 
(56  lbs.),  4  weekly  bags  of  pemmican  (14  lbs.  each),  2  weekly 
bags  of  raisins,  2  cheeses,  1  bag  of  onions,  14  tins  of  oil,  a  little 
spare  clothing,  a  spare  sleeping-bag,  and  a  spare  tent  and  poles. 
Also  my  small  primus  stove,  and  two  spare  sledges,  one  of 
which  was  fitted  with  iron  runners.  By  midnight  we  were 
camped,  and  saw  the  last  of  the  ship  steaming  out  of  the  bay. 

January  9. — Turned  out  at  6  A.M.,  but  we  did  not  get  away 
until  10.30,  shaping  course  N.W.  for  some  foothills  between 
us  and  Mt.  Melbourne.  Hard  rough  ice  and  a  strong  S.W. 
breeze  made  our  sledges  skid  and  did  the  runners  no  good. 
Crossed  many  thaw  pools  and  channels  covered  with  thin  ice, 
through  which  we  broke.  After  about  an  hour's  pulling,  how- 
ever, we  got  on  to  a  snow  surface,  which  was  better  going.  We 
camped  early  to  try  and  repair  the  sledgemeter.  Got  a  good 
round  of  angles  after  hoosh.  Night  calm  but  overcast.  Length- 
ened the  traces  as  we  may  expect  crevasses. 

January  10. — Overslept  ourselves,  not  turning  out  until  7. 
It  was  9  o'clock  before  we  were  under  way.  Our  course  lay 
over  the  piedmont  ice,  close  under  the  northern  foothills  which 
lay  between  us  and  Mt.  Melbourne.  Some  way  ahead  it  looked 
as  if  a  glacier  from  Mt.  Melbourne  came  out  on  the  piedmont, 
thereby  giving  us  a  road  to  the  north.  Soon  after  starting  snow 
began  to  fall,  and  that,  combined  with  a  slight  up-grade,  made 
our  sledges  very  heavy.  About  noon  we  rounded  a  point  (Cape 
Mossyface),  on  which  we  found  a  quantity  of  lichen,  and  came 
on  to  a  smooth  glacier,  of  easy  gradient,  and  snow-covered, 
which  I  hoped  came  from  Mt.  Melbourne;  but  the  weather  was 
so  thick  with  snow  we  could  see  nothing,  so  camped  for  lunch 
in  the  hope  of  its  clearing,  as  I  had  no  wish  to  pull  the  heavy 


78  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [January 

sledges  up  a  cul-de-sac.  This  evening  so  much  snow  fell  that 
we  had  to  remain  in  camp,  being  unable  to  see  ten  yards.  Snow- 
ing all  night. 

January  n. — Still  snowing  as  hard  as  ever  at  5.30  a.m., 
but  by  7.30  the  clouds  began  to  break,  and  by  9  we  were  on 
the  march.  Snow  very  soft  and  deep,  making  pulling  very 
heavy,  so  that  we  had  to  relay.  All  six  of  us  had  difficulty  in 
getting  one  sledge  along.  We  then  all  put  on  ski,  and  were  able 
to  get  along  better  as  we  broke  a  regular  trail  along  which  the 
sledge  ran. 

The  snow  and  mist  cleared  away  about  10  a.m.,  giving  us 
a  magnificent  view  up  a  large  glacier,  the  main  body  of  which 
seemed  to  flow  past  the  west  slope  of  Mt.  Melbourne.  A  few 
miles  south  of  Mt.  Melbourne  and  on  the  west  side  of  the  main 
glacier,  a  tributary  glacier,  which  we  named  from  its  shape  the 
Boomerang,  flows  in.  In  the  afternoon  a  S.W.  wind  improved 
the  surface  and  each  team  was  able  to  manage  its  own  sledge. 
A  lovely  night,  but  all  hands  very  tired. 

January  12. — Woke  at  3  A.M.  to  find  strong  wind,  with  drift. 
The  snow  ceased  a  little  while  we  had  breakfast,  only  to  come 
down  harder  than  ever  afterwards,  and  as  Dickason  and  I  were 
suffering  from  snow  blindness  we  did  not  march  till  3,  when  the 
wind  eased.  Camped  at  the  entrance  of  the  Boomerang  Glacier, 
which  I  think  may  be  a  possible  way  through  to  Wood  Bay. 

January  13. — Turned  out  at  6.  A  lovely  morning,  so  leav- 
ing camp  standing  we  went  a  little  way  up  the  Boomerang  Glacier 
to  see  if  it  would  be  possible  to  get  the  sledges  up.  The  route 
looked  feasible  but  probably  difficult  for  sledges,  so  I  decided 
to  try  the  main  glacier  first.  Returning  to  camp  about  1  o'clock 
we  pulled  north,  camping  for  the  night  north  of  the  Boomerang 
and  under  some  steep  ice  slopes. 

January  14. — Another  fine  day.  Dickason  and  I  were  snow- 
blind,  so  the  others  climbed  the  ice  slope  to  see  if  they  could 
find  a  way  for  the  sledge.  They  returned  to  camp  about  3.30, 
and  said  that  after  climbing  several  ice  undulations,  more  or  less 
crevassed,  they  came  to  a  steep  ice  slope  leading  to  a  rocky 
ridge. 

Owing  to  the  nails  having  come  out  of  Browning's  boots  he 
kept  losing  his  balance  and  nearly  dragging  the  party  down  with 
him,  and  as  there  were  several  large  crevasses  at  the  bottom  of 


ICE    STRUCTURE 


i 


1 


RE-CEMENTED    CREVASSE 


i9i2]  ON  THE   BOOMERANG  GLACIER  79 

the  slope,  Priestley  very  wisely  decided  to  return.  The  icefalls 
we  see  from  our  present  camp  apparently  connect  with  the  ridge. 
It  was  worth  going  on  to  see,  however,  so  we  got  under  weigh 
and  marched  till  7  P.M.,  when  we  camped  at  the  foot  of  the  first 
ice  falls  on  snow,  the  weather  having  come  over  very  thick  in  the 
afternoon. 

January  15. — Still  and  very  thick  when  we  turned  out  at 
6  A.M.,  so  there  was  nothing  for  it  but  to  turn  in  again  after 
breakfast.     The  Antarctic  teaches  one  patience  if  nothing  else. 

We  are  fairly  sheltered,  but  can  hear  the  wind  roaring  in 
the  crags  on  the  side  of  the  glacier,  and  the  snow  and  drift  are 
so  thick  that  we  can  only  see  a  few  yards.  Occasionally  in  the 
lulls  we  can  see  the  blue  icefalls  looming  up  through  the  drift, 
and  then  everything  shuts  down  again. 

The  conditions  remained  the  same  until  breakfast  on  January 
19,  when  it  began  to  clear  from  the  southward.  We  started 
away  after  breakfast  with  the  surface  awful,  and  the  snow  so 
deep  I  doubt  if  we  should  have  got  the  sledges  along  at  all 
if  we  had  not  had  ski,  which  enabled  us  to  break  a  trail.  As 
soon  as  it  was  clear  to  the  northward,  Priestley  and  I  climbed 
the  slopes  on  our  left  on  ski,  leaving  the  remainder  halted  at 
the  bottom.  The  view  from  the  ridge  was  not  promising.  The 
icefalls  reached  right  up  to  the  ridge,  a  mass  of  seracs  and  cre- 
vasses as  far  as  we  could  see,  and  I  decided  to  return  and  try 
the  Boomerang  Glacier,  which  lay  a  few  miles  south  of  us.  The 
sun  now  came  out,  and  in  the  deep  sticky  surface  it  took  all  six 
of  us  to  pull  one  sledge.  We  had  to  relay  all  the  way,  and  it 
was  six  o'clock  before  we  reached  the  N.  lateral  moraine  of  the 
Boomerang  Glacier,  where  we  camped. 

January  20. — After  breakfast  we  divided  into  two  parties. 
I,  taking  Levick  and  Dickason,  climbed  the  mountain  on  the  N. 
side  of  the  glacier.  Priestley,  taking  Abbott  and  Browning,  went 
up  the  glacier  on  the  moraine,  where  Priestley  wanted  to  collect. 

At  the  first  possible  place  my  party  left  the  glacier,  and, 
after  about  an  hour's  climb,  came  out  on  a  snow  field,  where 
we  roped  up  and  ploughed  through  deep  snow  lying  over  ice, 
along  the  foot  of  a  steep  slope,  which  we  attempted  to  climb  by 
cutting  steps  in  order  to  reach  a  rocky  spur  several  hundred  feet 
above  us.     Half-way  up,  however,  we  had  to  retrace  our  steps, 


80  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [January 

the  snow  being  inclined  to  avalanche,  and  continue  our  way 
along  the  foot  of  the  slope  for  about  an  hour,  when  we  were 
able  to  get  on  another  rocky  spur  and  climb. 

Some  of  the  granite  boulders  were  hollowed  out  in  a  won- 
derful way  by  the  action  of  sand-carrying  wind.  We  crawled 
right  inside  some,  and  found  room  for  five  or  six  men. 

The  view  from  where  we  were  was  very  fine  in  every  direc- 
tion but  N.W.,  where  a  higher  ridge  bounded  our  horizon. 
Looking  down  on  the  Mt.  Melbourne  neck  we  had  first  pro- 
posed crossing,  I  saw,  to  my  surprise,  that  the  flat  ice  on  top  of 
the  neck  was  heavily  crevassed. 

We  got  back  to  camp  about  6.30,  and  found  the  others 
had  not  yet  arrived.  They  turned  up  a  little  before  9,  all  very 
tired.  Priestley  reported  very  heavy  going,  soft  snow  up  to 
their  thighs,  which  completely  hid  the  crevasses,  and  they 
dropped  down  a  good  many. 

They  reached  a  height  of  3680  feet  above  the  camp,  but 
could  not  see  whether  the  glacier  would  form  a  good  route 
over  into  Wood  Bay. 

As  far  as  they  went  it  would  be  possible  to  get  sledges,  but 
progress  would  be  very  slow  indeed,  so  considering  our  limited 
time  we  decided  to  work  along  more  to  the  westward  in  the 
hope  of  finding  a  larger  and  easier  glacier.  Even  if  unsuccessful 
we  should  be  breaking  new  ground,  and  Priestley  could  put  in 
some  good  collecting  from  the  different  moraines,  while  I  sur- 
veyed. 

January  21. — A  fine  morning,  but  wind  in  the  mountains. 
After  getting  a  round  of  angles,  we  started,  my  party  crossing 
the  Boomerang  Glacier  and  working  down  the  west  side  of  the 
Melbourne  Glacier,  while  I  sent  Levick's  party  back  the  way  we 
came,  down  the  east  side  of  the  Melbourne  Glacier,  with  orders 
to  collect  from  the  different  exposures,  and  join  us  at  the  S.W. 
entrance  of  the  main  glacier. 

The  surface  was  better,  and  we  camped  that  evening  on  the 
south  moraine  of  the  Boomerang  and  well  down  the  Melbourne 
Glacier. 

We  had  been  unable  to  wear  our  glasses  yesterday  climb- 
ing, and  were  now  paying  the  penalty,  for  we  were  all  snow- 
blind,  so  we  dressed  each  other's  eyes  with  Hemisine,  and  turned 
in  very  sorry  for  ourselves. 


CREVASSED    ICE    AT    ENTRANCE    TO    PRIESTLEY    GLACIER 


" 


CREVASSED    ICE    AT    ENTRANCE    TO    PRIESTLEY    GLACIER 


i9*2]  SNOW-BLINDNESS  81 

January  22. — Only  one  eye  among  the  three  of  us,  and  that 
belongs  to  Dickason.  He  tells  me  that  it  is  lovely  morning, 
and  that  he  can  see  to  cook  hoosh.  After  hoosh  our  last  hope 
goes  and  we  do  no  more  cooking  that  day.  We  have  all  had 
snow-blindness  before,  but  never  anything  like  so  bad  as  this, 
and  are  in  great  pain.  Priestley's  eyes  and  mine  are  quite  closed 
up,  and  I  think  Dickason's  are  nearly  as  bad. 

January  23. — Eyes  better,  but  still  very  painful.  Started 
after  breakfast.     Surface  a  little  soft,  but  good  pulling  on  ski. 

After  6  p.m.  the  surface  got  so  bad,  owing  to  undercut  sas- 
trugi,  that  we  had  to  relay  half  our  load  at  a  time,  and  even 
then  had  frequent  upsets.  We  camped  at  9.30  P.M.  about  1  mile 
E.  of  a  cape  we  named  Cape  '  Sastrugi.' 

January  24. — A  fine  morning,  but  no  sign  of  Levick's  party, 
so  after  getting  a  true  bearing  and  round  of  angles,  I  joined 
Priestley  and  Dickason  collecting,  on  Cape  Sastrugi.  I  made 
some  sketches.  This  piedmont  we  are  on  extends  west  to  the 
Mt.  Nansen  Range,  and  seems  quite  flat,  except  where  glaciers 
run  in,  where  there  are  undulations  and  crevasses. 

January  25. — Overcast.  Levick  has  not  turned  up  yet,  which 
is  very  annoying.  It  is  useless  going  to  look  for  him,  as  the 
undulations  at  the  mouth  of  the  Melbourne  Glacier  would  com- 
pletely hide  a  party,  unless  both  happened  on  the  same  route. 
Collecting  to-day  on  some  moraines  south  of  us,  Priestley  fell 
through  a  snow  bridge  of  a  crevasse  up  to  his  arms.  He  was 
not  roped  at  the  time,  so  it  was  lucky  he  did  not  go  through 
altogether. 

January  26. — A  clear  morning,  but  blowing  hard,  with  drift. 
Climbed  the  hills  to  the  N.W.,  taking  the  theodolite  and  sketch- 
book, and  got  a  true  bearing  and  good  round  of  angles. 

I  also  made  out  the  truant  party  calmly  camped  on  the  east 
side  of  the  Melbourne  Glacier.  So  returning  to  camp  we  packed 
food  for  eighteen  days,  and  depoted  the  remainder,  together  with 
the  specimens,  and  a  note  to  Levick  telling  him  my  proposed 
plans,  which  were  to  try  the  two  glaciers  which  came  in  at  the 
N.W.  corner  of  the  piedmont,  for  a  route  into  Wood  Bay,  and 
directing  him  not  to  attempt  them  unless  he  caught  me  up,  but 
to  photograph  and  collect  on  the  shores  of  the  piedmont. 

January  27. — Overcast.  Tops  of  mountains  obscured. 
Strong  wind  in  squalls.     Started  after  breakfast,  and  with  our 

VOL.    II — 6 


82  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [January 

light  load  made  good  progress.  We  made  a  big  sweep  round 
Cape  Sastrugi  to  try  and  avoid  the  crevasses,  but  without  success. 

The  afternoon  was  hot  and  muggy,  and  when  we  camped 
that  night  we  were  wet  with  perspiration.  After  supper  I  went 
out  with  Priestley  to  collect,  and  the  sun  being  hot  I  took  off 
my  vest,  and,  turning  it  inside  out,  put  it  over  my  sweater,  where 
it  dried  beautifully.  I  remarked  to  Priestley  at  the  time  that  this 
ought  to  bring  me  luck,  and  sure  enough,  immediately  afterwards 
I  found  a  sandstone  rock  containing  fossil  wood,  the  best  speci- 
men as  yet  secured  by  the  party. 

January  28. — Blowing  hard  from  the  N.W.,  with  drift,  but 
clear  sky.  The  temperature  being  warm,  the  drift  made  every- 
thing very  wet.  After  breakfast  Priestley  hunted  for  fossils, 
while  I  got  another  round  of  angles.  We  then  marched,  edging 
over  to  the  northern  moraines,  on  which  we  camped  that  night. 

January  29. — A  beautiful  day,  but  no  sign  of  the  other  party. 
After  breakfast  we  started,  and  crossing  moraine,  steered  for 
what  we  called  *  Corner  Glacier,'  a  small  steep  glacier  whose 
course  lay  more  on  our  route  for  Wood  Bay.  The  going  was 
easy,  and  we  camped  that  evening  on  the  north  lateral  moraine, 
which  lies  at  the  foot  of  a  steep  scree  descending  from  the 
mountains.  The  moraine  was  a  very  large  one,  with  a  number 
of  conical  heaps  and  with  lakes  in  all  the  little  valleys.  The 
noise  of  running  water  from  a  lot  of  streams  sounded  very  odd 
after  the  usual  Antarctic  silence.  Occasionally  an  enormous 
boulder  would  come  crashing  down  from  the  heights  above, 
making  jumps  of  from  50  to  100  feet  at  a  time. 

January  30. — Another  fine  morning,  so  after  breakfast  we 
started  for  the  south  end  of  '  Black  Ridge,'  from  which  place 
we  could  get  a  view  up  the  Priestley  Glacier.  Arriving  there 
about  1  o'clock  we  found  we  were  cut  off  from  the  moraine 
by  a  barranca  from  40  to  50  feet  deep.  The  glacier  itself 
seemed  an  important  one,  judging  by  the  disturbance  it  made 
in  the  piedmont  where  it  flowed  in,  large  undulations  and  big 
crevasses  extending  many  miles  out. 

Although  not  so  steep  as  Corner  Glacier,  it  was  much  more 
crevassed,  but  what  decided  us  to  try  Corner  Glacier  was  that 
the  Priestley  Glacier  curved  from  a  S.W.  direction,  which  would 
have  taken  us  off  our  course.  Accordingly,  after  I  had  secured 
a  round  of  angles,  we  steered  for  the  foot  of  the  icefalls  of 


i9i2]  CORNER    GLACIER  83 

the  Corner  Glacier,  getting  there  about  5  p.m.  After  hoosh  we 
left  camp  standing  and  climbed  the  glacier,  which  proved  a  very 
easy  job,  as,  although  steep  and  broken,  the  seracs  are  worn 
smooth  and  many  of  the  crevasses  filled  in,  which  looks  as  if 
there  was  very  little  movement  now. 

Arriving  at  the  top  of  the  first  icefall  we  found  ourselves 
on  rather  a  steep  broken  surface,  the  valley  running  in  a  north- 
westerly direction  for  a  few  miles,  where  it  was  fed  by  several 
steep  glaciers  or  ice  cascades  from  the  heights.  It  would  have 
been  interesting  to  follow  this  glacier  up,  but  the  route  was 
quite  impossible  for  a  sledge  and  we  returned  to  camp  footsore 
and  disappointed. 

January  31. — Fog,  snow,  and  then  drift  kept  us  in  our  tent 
till  one  o'clock,  when,  the  snow  easing  up  a  little,  we  marched 
for  the  moraines  of  the  Priestley  Glacier.  I  had  now  given  up 
all  hope  of  getting  through  to  Wood  Bay  this  year,  our  time 
being  too  short  to  get  over  by  the  Boomerang  Glacier,  which 
I  consider  the  only  practicable  route  for  a  sledge,  so  we  turned 
our  attention  to  the  Priestley  Glacier,  on  whose  moraines 
Priestley  hoped  to  find  some  more  fossil  wood. 

We  camped  about  6  on  the  southern  moraine.  While  so 
doing  Dickason  caught  sight  of  Levick  and  his  party  heading 
for  the  Corner  Glacier.  After  some  difficulty  we  managed  to 
attract  their  attention  and  they  pulled  over  and  camped  near  us. 
Levick  had  apparently  misunderstood  my  instructions,  and 
waited  for  me  at  Cape  Mossyface,  then  seeing  his  mistake  he 
headed  for  Cape  Sastrugi  across  the  mouth  of  the  Melbourne 
Glacier  and  crossed  a  maze  of  crevasses.  He  says,  '  Getting 
under  way  about  10,  we  marched  till  12.30  over  fairly  good 
surface.  After  that  we  got  into  a  perfect  net-work  of  crevasses. 
They  were  mostly  snow-bridged,  and  had  we  not  had  ski  on  we 
could  never  have  got  over,  as  we  could  break  holes  in  them  in 
places  with  our  ice-axes.  It  was  7.30  before  we  found  a  place 
where  there  was  a  small  space  sufficiently  free  from  crevasses 
to  enable  us  to  camp.  One  of  the  snow  bridges  we  had  to  cross 
broke  under  the  weight  of  the  sledge,  but  only  just  under  the 
bows.  Had  she  gone  down  altogether  the  result  might  have  been 
serious.    After  that  we  relayed,  taking  half  our  load  at  a  time., 

February  1.— We  decided  to  put  in  the  rest  of  our  time 
collecting  from  the  moraines  and  foot-hills  north  of  where  we 


84  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

had  landed,  as  we  knew  we  should  have  no  time  to  get  far 
enough  up  the  Boomerang  to  survey  any  new  ground.  During 
the  day  I  found  one  large  piece  of  sandstone  with  the  impression 
of  part  of  a  fossil  tree. 

February  2. — We  spent  the  forenoon  breaking  up  a  big 
boulder,  a  longer  job  than  we  expected,  as  the  lower  half  was 
embedded  in  the  frozen  soil.  After  digging  it  out  and  rolling  it 
over,  Priestley  split  it  open.  Inside  we  found  a  beautiful  speci- 
men of  wood.  Levick  photographed  it  before  we  proceeded  to 
break  it  up,  as  we  knew  we  could  never  get  it  out  whole. 

February  3. — The  weather,  which  had  been  perfect  up  till 
now,  changed,  and  we  woke  to  find  it  overcast,  with  a  cold  N.W. 
wind  blowing. 

We  started  away  after  breakfast  and  made  good  way,  pass- 
ing Cape  Sastrugi  before  we  camped. 

February  4. — Fine  day.  We  crossed  the  Campbell  Glacier. 
The  surface  was  very  good  for  pulling  on  ski,  but  too  soft 
without. 

We  camped  to-night  about  6  miles  off  the  main  depot.  My 
eyes  rather  bad. 

February  5. — Priestley  and  Dickason  went  over  to  collect 
on  Lichen  Island,  while  Levick  and  Abbott  did  the  slopes  north 
of  us. 

Priestley  found  an  extraordinary  quantity  of  lichens  on  the 
island. 

February  6. — Fine  morning,  but  a  strange  southwesterly 
wind. 

Getting  under  way  after  breakfast,  we  reached  the  main 
depot  about  3  o'clock,  and  found  to  our  surprise  Debenham's 
party  had  never  landed,  our  letters  to  him  being  still  in  the 
1  post  box  '  we  had  fixed  up. 

February  7. — The  wind,  which  had  fallen  yesterday  evening, 
freshened  up  between  1  and  2  A.M.,  and,  when  we  turned  out, 
was  blowing  a  whole  gale,  but  with  a  clear  sky.  An  ex-meridian 
altitude  gave  the  latitude  of  this  place  740  55'  S.  In  the  after- 
noon Levick,  Priestley,  Dickason,  and  I  climbed  to  the  top  of 
what  we  afterwards  called  Inexpressible  Island  to  see  if  we 
could  make  out  the  Nansen  Moraine,  which  Priestley  wanted  to 
visit.  I  told  him  to  take  Abbott  and  Dickason  to-morrow,  while 
I  carry  the  theodolite  up  here  and  get  a  round  of  angles. 


INSIDE    DOOR    OF   IGLOO    BY    LIGHT    OF   BLUBBER    LAMPS 


LEVICK  S    CAMP   AMONG    CREVASSES 


i9i2]  EVANS    COVES  85 

February  8. — Both  parties  started  directly  after  breakfast; 
Priestley,  taking  Abbott  and  Dickason  and  a  week's  provisions, 
went  round  west  of  the  island,  keeping  on  the  piedmont  ice,  and 
I  climbed  the  island  with  the  theodolite,  taking  Levick  and 
Browning  with  me. 

It  was  a  clear  day,  but  blowing  a  regular  gale  from  the  west, 
the  wind  from  the  plateau  feeling  very  cold — an  unpleasant  day 
for  theodolite  work.  By  aneroid  I  made  the  height  of  the  island 
1320  feet.     We  returned  to  camp  about  7  P.M. 

February  9. — It  came  on  to  blow  very  hard  in  the  morning, 
and  we  had  to  secure  the  tents  with  big  stones  on  the  skirting, 
the  snow  being  all  blown  off.  In  the  evening  Browning  got  two 
penguins  for  the  pot. 

February  10. — Still  blowing  very  hard,  too  hard  in  fact  to 
set  up  the  theodolite.  Priestley  and  party  pulled  in  about  2  P.M. 
He  said  they  had  had  a  gale  of  wind  the  whole  time,  the  wind 
only  dropping  for  two  hours.  The  moraine  we  saw  from  the 
top  of  the  island  appears  to  be  the  Priestley  Glacier  moraine. 
They  found  some  sandstone  with  fossil  wood  inclusions,  but  not 
such  good  specimens  as  we  got  inland. 

In  the  afternoon  Priestley  and  I  found  a  lot  of  shells,  worm 
casts,  and  sponge  spicules  in  little  holes  on  the  piedmont. 

February  11. — The  wind  dropped  after  breakfast,  so  Priest- 
ley, Dickason,  and  I  sledged  over  to  the  hills  north  of  us  and 
camped  by  a  lake  on  the  southern  slopes.  Levick,  Abbott,  and 
Browning,  leaving  their  camp  standing,  examined  Evans  Coves 
on  the  S.  Island.  They  found  a  small  penguin  rookery  and  a 
large  number  of  seals  on  the  ice  foot. 

They  also  found  a  large  number  of  old  dead  seals  on  the 
beach,  one  or  two  of  the  largest  measuring  12  feet  in  length. 

February  12. — Heavy  snow,  wind,  and  drift  all  day.  Levick 
and  his  party  pulled  in  about  3  P.M.  and  camped  near  us. 

February  13. — Snowing  all  night,  and  although  it  eased  this 
morning,  it  kept  on  all  day,  stopping  our  survey  completely. 
In  the  evening  we  killed  three  penguins  for  food.  Levick  and 
party  returned  to  the  main  depot. 

February  14  and  15. — Priestley  and  I  spent  the  two  days 
collecting  and  surveying.  On  the  night  of  the  15th  it  began  to 
snow,  and,  a  strong  plateau  wind  getting  up,  we  spent  the  16th 
in  our  tent,  the  drift  being  too  thick  to  do  anything. 


86  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

February  17. — Still  blowing  hard,  with  drift,  but  clear  over- 
head. In  the  afternoon  we  packed  up,  and  pulled  over  to  the 
main  depot,  as  the  ship  was  due  the  following  day.  We  camped 
late  in  the  evening  in  our  old  place  under  the  moraine.  Blow- 
ing a  heavy  gale  all  night. 

February  18  to  29. — Most  of  this  time  while  we  were  wait- 
ing for  the  Terra  Nova  the  wind  blew  with  uninterrupted  violence 
and  the  tents  suffered  considerably.  Our  own  tent  split  near  the 
cap,  but  after  several  failures  we  managed  to  tie  a  lashing 
round  the  top  and  so  saved  the  split  from  spreading  to  the  body 
of  the  canvas. 

Levick's  tent  also  split  near  the  opening,  and  Abbott  was 
obliged  to  sew  the  rent  up  in  spite  of  the  coldness  of  the  blizzard. 

On  February  24  the  blizzard  lulled  for  a  short  time  and 
we  were  enabled  to  get  a  little  exercise,  but  the  whole  of  this 
time  was  occupied  with  a  not  too  cheerful  discussion  about  food. 

Our  sledging  provisions  were  due  to  give  out  on  the  27th 
and  it  was  necessary  to  reserve  at  least  half  of  the  depot  food 
for  the  sledge  journey  down  the  coast  in  the  spring  which  would 
become  inevitable  should  the  ship  not  relieve  us.  It  was  there- 
fore necessary  to  reduce  the  ration  at  once,  and  I  asked  Priestley 
to  take  charge  of  all  food  from  now  on  till  the  time  we  were 
relieved  or  relieved  ourselves. 

We  decided  to  reduce  the  biscuit  to  half  ration  and  cut  out 
everything  else  for  the  time  being  except  seal  meat  and  a  small 
portion  of  pemmican  for  flavouring.  This  same  day  we  were 
fortunate  enough  to  kill  a  small  crab-eater  seal.  I  tasted  a  small 
piece  of  raw  blubber  and  rather  liked  it,  while  Abbott  and 
Browning  declared  that  it  had  a  very  strong  flavour  of  melon. 

It  was  some  time,  however,  before  the  blubber  was  added 
to  our  diet  as  a  regular  ration.  During  this  short  period  of 
calm  several  times  one  or  other  of  the  party  thought  they  saw 
smoke  off  the  end  of  the  Drygalski,  but  there  seems  no  doubt 
that  what  they  saw  was  only  what  is  known  as  frost  smoke, 
the  vapour  from  the  leads  of  open  water  on  pack  ice,  though 
die  ship  certainly  was  at  one  time  within  25  miles  of  us. 

On  the  27th  further  discomfort  was  added  to  our  condition 
as  the  gale  was  accompanied  by  blinding  drift,  so  that  we  had 
all  the  unpleasantness  of  a  barrier  blizzard  with  no  adequate 
shelter;     for   the   tents   were   threadbare   and   torn   in   several 


i9i2]  SHORT    RATIONS  87 

places.  The  snow  was  soon  so  thick  that  the  sledge  was  com- 
pletely buried  with  drift  and  the  tent  three-quarters  hidden. 

During  most  of  this  fortnight  we  were  living  on  one  meal 
a  day,  and  on  this  day  we  were  unable  even  to  get  this,  so  that 
by  the  29th,  when  the  wind  eased  for  a  day  or  two,  we  were  in 
no  wise  in  a  condition  to  look  forward  with  equanimity  to  the 
chance  of  a  winter  without  sufficient  food  or  decent  shelter;  in 
fact  so  weak  were  we  that  a  walk  of  a  mile  or  two  tired  us 
far  more  than  a  hard  day's  sledging  had  done  a  month  before. 

Perhaps  the  worst  feature  in  our  present  position,  however, 
is  the  absence  of  any  news  from  our  comrades,  and  the  fear 
which  is  naturally  growing  within  us,  lest  the  ship  should  have 
got  into  some  trouble  during  this  heavy  weather. 

February  29. — The  wind  dropped  in  the  morning,  and  we 
had  our  first  fine  day  since  the  15th.  In  the  afternoon  we  pulled 
over  and  camped  on  the  island  south  of  the  Moraine,  which 
we  have  named  Inexpressible  Island.  In  the  evening  after 
hoosh  we  climbed  *  Lookout '  Hill,  and  saw  what  we  thought  was 
smoke  on  the  horizon,  and  under  it  a  small  black  speck.  Un- 
fortunately, it  turned  out  to  be  only  an  iceberg  with  a  cloud 
behind  it,  showing  dark  under  a  snow-squall. 

Soon  after  the  wind  and  snow  recommenced. 

March  1. — The  weather  cleared  at  10  a.m.  I  had  decided 
to  start  killing  seals  for  the  winter  to-day  if  there  was  no  sign 
of  the  ship,  so  after  seeing  no  sign  of  anything  from  Look-out 
Hill,  we  killed  and  cut  up  two  seals  and  eighteen  penguins. 

There  are  very  few  of  the  former  up,  and  seals  hate  wind, 
so  we  must  pray  for  fine  weather  to  stock  our  larder,  as  the 
animals  seldom  leave  the  water  in  the  winter. 

March  2  to  4. — It  came  on  to  blow  hard  in  the  night  of 
the  1st,  and  continued  blowing  steadily  for  the  next  three  days. 

The  gale  reached  its  height  on  the  3rd,  when  the  tent  split 
and  we  had  to  shift  camp  on  to  a  snowdrift,  where  we  could 
raise  a  bit  of  a  snow  wall.  These  last  three  days  we  have  been 
lying  in  our  wet  bags,  watching  the  tent  poles  bend  and  quiver 
as  each  squall  strikes  the  tent,  and  speculating  as  to  what  can 
have  happened  to  the  ship. 

We  also  feel  having  only  two  biscuits  a  day  and  an  insuffi- 
cient supply  of  seal  meat.  We  are  hungry  both  for  news  of  the 
Southern  Party  and  for  more  food. 


88  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [March 

March  5  to  15. — The  conditions  are  gradually  but  surely 
becoming  more  unbearable  and  we  cannot  hope  for  improve- 
ment until  we  are  settled  in  some  permanent  home  for  the 
winter.  The  tents  we  are  living  in  at  present  are  more  thread- 
bare than  ever,  and  are  pierced  with  innumerable  holes  both 
large  and  small,  so  that  during  the  whole  time  we  are  inside  them 
we  are  living  in  a  young  gale. 

To-day,  March  15,  is  the  last  that  I  expect  the  ship,  and 
from  now  on  I  shall  conclude  something  has  happened  and  that 
she  is  not  coming. 

For  some  days  we  have  been  preparing  in  every  way  possible 
for  the  winter,  and  our  position  may  be  summed  up  as  follows : 
We  landed,  besides  our  sledging  rations,  six  boxes  of  biscuits  with 
45  lbs.  in  each  box.  The  sledging  biscuits  were  finished  on 
March  1,  and  of  the  others  we  have  to  keep  two  boxes  intact 
for  our  journey  down  the  coast. 

We  have  also  enough  cocoa  to  give  us  a  mug  of  very  thin 
cocoa  five  nights  of  the  week;  enough  tea  for  a  mug  of  equally 
thin  tea  once  a  week;  and  the  remaining  day  we  must  reboil 
the  tea  leaves  or  drink  hot  water  solus.  Our  only  luxuries  are 
a  very  small  amount  of  chocolate  and  sugar,  sufficient  to  give 
us  a  stick  of  chocolate  every  Saturday  and  every  other  Wednes- 
day, and  eight  lumps  of  sugar  every  Sunday.  A  bag  of  raisins 
we  are  keeping  to  allow  twenty-five  raisins  per  man  on  birth- 
days and  red  letter  days,  and  I  can  see  that  one  of  Priestley's 
difficulties  in  the  future  is  going  to  be  preventing  each  man 
from  having  a  birthday  once  a  month.  We  have  decided  to 
open  up  neither  the  chocolate  nor  the  sugar  till  we  are  settled 
in  our  winter  quarters,  and,  at  present,  breakfast  and  supper 
each  consist  of  a  mug  of  weak  seal  hoosh  and  one  of  weak 
cocoa,  with  one  biscuit. 

To  eke  out  these  provisions  we  have  eleven  seals  and  120 
penguins  already  killed,  but  to  get  through  the  whole  winter, 
even  on  half  rations,  we  shall  require  several  more  seals,  and 
the  infrequency  of  their  appearance  is  causing  us  all  great 
anxiety. 

The  wind  is  incessant,  but  although  strong  and  very  cold, 
it  at  least  has  the  merit  of  being  usually  free  from  drift,  so  that 
on  most  days  we  can  work  even  if  under  very  disadvantageous 
conditions. 


i9i2]  ANCIENT   SEAWEED  89 

There  is  plenty  of  work  for  all  hands,  for  besides  collecting 
the  seals  and  penguins  we  have  had  to  carry  over  our  equip- 
ment, such  as  it  is,  and  the  provisions  from  our  depot  at  Hell's 
Gate  to  the  site  of  the  snow  cave  on  Inexpressible  Island,  while 
three  or  four  of  us  are  usually  at  work  there  with  pick  and 
shovel. 

We  have  selected  a  hard  drift  under  the  lee  of  a  small  hill 
and  have  commenced  burrowing  into  it,  using  two  short-handled 
ice-axes  of  Priestley's.  It  is  slow  work,  but  after  a  few  hours 
we  had  a  sheltered  place  to  work  in  and  made  better  progress. 

We  have  also  been  experimenting  on  a  blubber  reading  lamp 
and  are,  I  think,  on  a  fair  way  to  success. 

March  16. — Blowing  hard  all  day,  very  cold.  Our  bags  and 
all  gear  are  covered  with  drift.  The  outlook  is  not  very  cheerful. 
We  are  evidently  in  for  a  winter  here,  under  very  hard  condi- 
tions. When  we  can  be  out  and  working  things  are  not  so  bad, 
but  lying  in  our  bags  covered  with  drift,  with  nothing  to  do  but 
speculate  as  to  what  has  happened  to  the  ship,  is  depressing. 
We  are  using  salt  water  in  our  hoosh  and  some  bleached  and 
decayed  seaweed  from  a  raised  beach,  which  we  try  to  imagine 
is  like  cabbage.  Priestley  says  he  would  not  object  to  fresh  sea- 
weed, but  cannot  induce  himself  to  include  prehistoric  seaweed 
in  our  regular  ration. 

March  17. — Still  blowing,  but  clear,  so  after  breakfast  we 
struck  camp,  and  started  carrying  our  gear  to  the  hut.  The 
distance  is  only  1  mile,  but  over  a  chaos  of  big  boulders  which 
are  the  cause  of  many  falls.  Our  boots  have  given  out  and 
finnesko  would  not  last  a  day  on  such  surface.  Before  we  had 
got  all  our  gear  over,  it  came  on  to  blow  harder  than  ever, 
the  squalls  bringing  small  pebbles  along  with  them,  and  we  were 
several  times  taken  off  our  feet  and  blown  down. 

Luckily  no  one  was  damaged,  although  we  all  got  pretty 
well  frostbitten.  It  was  a  great  relief  to  get  into  our  finished  hut 
out  of  the  wind. 

We  were  all  dead  tired,  and  turned  in  directly  after  hoosh. 

March  18. — Our  first  night  in  the  hut  was  cold,  as  we  have 
no  door  yet  and  no  insulation;  in  fact,  it  will  take  at  least  two 
days'  more  work  to  make  it  big  enough  for  us,  but  it  is  a  shelter 
from  the  wind,  which  we  can  hear  roaring  outside.  We  spent 
the  day  chipping  away  at  the  ice  walls  and  floor.     As  a  matter 


90  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [March 

of  fact  our  '  hut '  is  only  a  cave  dug  into  the  snow  drift,  and 
our  roof  is  of  hard  snow  about  3  feet  thick,  while  the  walls 
and  floor  are  of  ice.  As  snow  is  a  better  insulator  than  ice, 
we  shall  line  the  walls  with  snow  blocks  and  pack  the  space 
between  the  snow  and  ice  with  seaweed.  The  floor  will  be  of 
a  layer  of  small  pebbles  on  the  ice,  with  seaweed  on  top  of  that; 
then  our  tent  cloths  are  spread  on  the  seaweed. 

March  19. — A  very  heavy  gale  is  blowing,  but  this  no  longer 
interferes  with  our  work,  and  the  hut  has  grown  to  quite  a 
respectable  size. 

Our  craving  for  biscuit  is  growing  awful.  We  do  not  like 
this  meat  diet.  In  the  afternoon  the  wind  moderated  a  little, 
but  the  squalls  were  still  heavy.  About  6  p.m.  we  heard  voices 
outside,  and  Levick  and  his  party  arrived  without  sleeping-bags 
and  all  pretty  well  frostbitten.  They  had  had  a  bad  time,  their 
tent  poles  having  been  broken  in  a  squall,  and  their  tent  blown 
to  rags.  They  had  piled  rocks  on  the  rest  of  their  gear  and 
then  came  over  to  look  for  us.  After  reviving  them  with  hoosh, 
we  spent  a  most  uncomfortable  night,  sleeping  two  in  each  bag. 

Levick  was  my  partner.  My  bag  was,  luckily,  a  good  one, 
and  nothing  split,  but  I  should  not  care  to  repeat  the  experience. 

March  20. — Luckily  the  weather  had  improved  enough  for 
Levick's  party  to  get  their  bags  and  gear  over.  The  rest  of 
us  worked  at  the  hut. 

March  21. — A  cold  wind,  but  fine.  Priestley,  Levick,  and 
Dickason  worked  at  the  hut,  while  Abbott,  Browning,  and  I  went 
over  to  the  main  depot  to  bring  some  more  gear  over.  On  the 
way  over  we  saw  a  seal  come  up  several  times  and  try  to  get  on 
the  ice  foot.  Leaving  Browning  to  watch  the  seal,  Abbott  and 
I  went  over  for  the  load,  and  on  our  way  to  our  great  joy  we 
saw  Browning  cutting  up  the  seal.  But  a  still  greater  treat  was 
in  store  for  us.  The  seal's  stomach  was  full  of  fish,  thirty-six 
of  which  were  nearly  whole.  We  took  these  up  to  the  hut,  fried 
them  in  blubber,  and  found  them  excellent.  In  future  we  shall 
always  look  for  fish  as  soon  as  we  kill  a  seal. 

March  22. — Spent  the  day  bringing  up  what  stores  we  had 
left,  while  some  worked  at  the  hut,  which  is  already  beginning 
to  look  more  habitable.  The  weather  is  clear  and  cold,  but  these 
strong  plateau  winds  continue,  and  we  get  our  noses  frostbitten 
every  time  we  go  out.     My  nose  is  one  great  blister. 


THIS    PENGUIN    HAS    AN    INDUSTRIOUS    MATE 


53e 


THIS    ONE    HASN  T 


i9i2]  WINTER    PREPARATIONS  91 

The  sea  was  freezing  over  in  the  bay,  but  the  wind  kept  the 
ice  from  forming  permanently. 

March  23. — We  put  in  another  good  day's  work  at  the  hut. 
Abbott  and  I  killed  and  cut  up  a  seal.     We  have  now  13. 

March  24,  25,  26. — Blowing  a  gale,  with  drift.  We  worked 
at  insulating  the  hut. 

March  27. — It  lulled  a  little  in  the  forenoon,  so  three  of  us 
managed  to  get  as  far  as  the  ice  foot  to  bring  up  blubber,  which 
we  pack  on  our  backs,  and  which,  in  spite  of  being  frozen,  makes 
our  clothes  in  an  awful  mess.  In  fact  we  are  saturated  to  the 
skin  with  blubber,  and  our  clothes  in  consequence  feel  very  cold. 

When  we  kill  a  seal,  we  cut  out  the  heart,  liver,  and  kid- 
neys; then  cut  the  meat  up  into  convenient  joints  and  the  blubber 
and  skin  into  pieces  about  2  feet  square,  which  we  can  carry  up 
on  our  backs  and  flense  in  the  hut.  We  also  preserve  the  head, 
as  besides  its  meat  it  contains  the  greatest  delicacy  of  all,  the 
brain.    The  gale  came  on  harder  than  ever  in  the  afternoon. 

Browning  and  I  are  suffering  from  dysentery. 

March  29  to  April  5. — High  wind  and  bitterly  cold.  We  all 
get  frostbitten  constantly  while  working  at  the  hut,  and  most  of 
us  are  suffering  from  dysentery. 

April  5. — A  great  improvement  in  the  weather,  and  we  got 
on  well  with  the  hut.  We  also  carried  up  a  lot  of  our  things 
from  the  depot.  In  the  evening  just  as  we  were  stopping  work 
I  saw  three  seals  up  on  the  ice,  so  we  turned  out  again  and 
killed  and  butchered  them.  This  makes  sixteen  seals,  and  if  we 
can  march  early  should  put  us  out  of  danger  with  regard  to 
food.  To  celebrate  the  occasion  Priestley  allowed  us  an  extra 
biscuit  each. 

April  7. — Northerly  gales  and  drift  since  the  5th.  The  way 
from  the  hut  to  the  ice  foot  is  strewn  with  huge  boulders,  and 
it  is  a  difficult  job  walking  over  these  in  a  gale  of  wind  without 
a  load,  while  when  one  is  staggering  up  under  a  load  of  meat 
or  blubber,  it  is  particularly  maddening.  When  a  squall  catches 
you,  over  you  go  between  two  boulders,  with  your  legs  in  the 
air  and  the  load  of  blubber  holding  you  down  firmly.  Our  boots 
are  all  giving  out  with  this  rough  walking,  and  we  dare  not  use 
our  finnesko,  but  must  keep  them  for  spring  sledging.  Our  feet 
are  getting  very  frequently  frostbitten  and  are  beginning  to  feel 
as  if  the  circulation  might  become  permanently  injured. 


92  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [April 

April  9. — Warmer  to-day.  We  saw  a  small  seal  on  a  floe 
but  were  unable  to  reach  him.  The  bay  remains  open  still. 
On  the  still  days  a  thin  film  of  ice  forms,  but  blows  out  as  soon 
as  the  wind  comes  up.  In  these  early  days,  before  we  had  per- 
fected our  cooking  and  messing  arrangements,  a  great  part  of 
our  day  was  taken  up  with  cooking  and  preparing  the  food,  but 
later  on  we  got  used  to  the  ways  of  a  blubber  stove,  and  things 
went  more  smoothly.  We  had  landed  all  our  spare  paraffin  from 
the  ship,  and  this  gave  us  enough  oil  to  use  the  primus  for  break- 
fast, provided  we  melted  the  ice  over  the  blubber  fire  the  day 
before.  The  blubber  stove  was  made  of  an  old  oil  tin  cut 
down.  In  this  we  put  some  old  seal  bones  taken  from  the 
carcases  we  found  on  the  beach.  A  piece  of  blubber  skewered 
on  to  a  marline  spike  and  held  over  the  flame  dripped  oil 
on  the  bones  and  fed  the  fire.  In  this  way  we  could  cook 
hoosh  nearly  as  quickly  as  we  could  on  the  primus.  Of  course 
the  stove  took  several  weeks  of  experimenting  before  it 
reached  this  satisfactory  state.  With  certain  winds  we  were 
nearly  choked  with  a  black  oily  smoke  that  hurt  our  eyes  and 
brought  on  much  the  same  symptoms  as  accompany  snow 
blindness. 

We  take  it  in  turns  to  be  cook  and  messman,  working  in 
pairs: — Abbott  and  I,  Levick  and  Browning,  Priestley  and 
Dickason,  and  thus  each  has  one  day  on  in  three.  The  duties 
of  the  cooks  are  to  turn  out  at  7  and  cook  and  serve  out  the 
breakfast,  the  others  remaining  in  their  bags  for  the  meal.  Then 
we  all  have  a  siesta  till  10.30,  when  we  turn  out  for  the  day's 
work.  The  cook  starts  the  blubber  stove  and  melts  blubber 
for  the  lamps.  The  messman  takes  an  ice-axe  and  chips  frozen 
seal  meat  in  the  passage  by  the  light  of  a  blubber  lamp.  A  cold 
job  this  and  trying  to  the  temper,  as  scraps  of  meat  fly  in  all 
directions  and  have  to  be  carefully  collected  afterwards.  The 
remainder  carry  up  the  meat  and  blubber  or  look  for  seals.  By 
5  P.M.  all  except  the  cooks  are  in  their  bags,  and  we  have  supper. 
After  supper  the  cooks  melt  ice  for  the  morning,  prepare  break- 
fast, and  clear  up.  Our  rations  at  this  time  were  as  follows : — 
Breakfast,  1  mug  of  penguin  and  seal  hoosh  and  1  biscuit.  Sup- 
per iy2  mugs  of  seal,  1  biscuit  and  J4  pint  of  thin  cocoa,  tea,  or 
hot  water.  We  were  always  hungry  on  this,  and  to  swell  the 
hoosh  we  used  occasionally  to  try  putting  in  seaweed,  but  most 


,T^T 


19X2]  HUNGER    AND    SUPPLIES  93 

of  it  had  deteriorated  owing  to  the  heat  of  the  sun  and  the 
attentions  of  the  penguins. 

The  cocoa  we  could  only  afford  to  have  five  days  a  week 
and  then  very  thin,  but  as  we  had  a  little  tea  we  had  weak  tea 
on  Sunday  and  reboiled  the  leaves  for  Monday.  As  already 
stated  we  had  a  little  chocolate  (2  ounces  per  man  a  week), 
and  8  lumps  of  sugar  every  Sunday.  Our  tobacco  soon  ran  out, 
even  with  the  most  rigid  economy,  and  we  were  reduced  to  smok- 
ing the  much  boiled  tea  and  wood  shavings — a  poor  substitute. 
About  the  middle  of  this  month  we  found  we  were  getting 
through  our  seal  meat  too  fast,  so  had  to  come  down  to  half 
the  above  ration,  and  it  was  not  until  the  middle  of  July,  when 
we  got  some  more  seals,  that  we  were  able  to  go  back  to  the 
old  ration. 

There  is  no  doubt  that  during  this  period  we  were  all  miser- 
ably hungry,  even  directly  after  the  meals.  Towards  the  end 
of  June  we  had  to  cut  down  still  more,  and  have  only  one  bis- 
cuit per  day,  and  after  July  to  stop  the  biscuit  ration  altogether 
until  September,  when  we  started  one  biscuit  a  day  again.  By 
this  means  we  were  able  to  save  enough  biscuits  for  a  month 
at  half  ration  for  our  journey  down  the  coast.  I  am  sure  seals 
have  never  been  so  thoroughly  eaten  as  ours  were.  There  was 
absolutely  no  waste.  The  brain  was  our  greatest  luxury;  then 
the  liver,  kidneys,  and  heart,  which  we  used  to  save  for  Sundays. 
The  bones,  after  we  had  picked  all  the  meat  off  them,  we  put 
on  one  side,  so  that  if  the  worst  came  to  the  worst  we  could 
pound  them  up  for  soup.  The  best  of  the  undercut  was  saved 
for  sledging.  After  our  experience  in  March,  when  we  got 
thirty-nine  fish  out  of  a  seal's  stomach,  we  always  cut  them  open 
directly  we  killed  them  in  the  hope  of  finding  more,  but  we  never 
again  found  anything  fit  to  eat.  One  of  our  greatest  troubles 
was  a  lack  of  variety  in  the  flavouring  of  our  meals.  Two  at- 
tempts were  made  by  Levick  to  relieve  this  want  from  the 
medical  chest,  but  both  were  failures.  Once  we  dissolved  several 
ginger  tabloids  in  the  hoosh  without  any  effect  at  all,  and  on  the 
historic  occasion  when  we  used  a  mustard  plaster,  there  was  a 
general  decision  that  the  correct  term  would  have  been  linseed 
plaster,  as  the  mustard  could  not  be  tasted  at  all  and  the  flavour 
of  linseed  was  most  distinct. 

For  lighting  purposes  the  blubber  lamps  we  made  were  very 


94  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [April 

satisfactory.  We  had  some  little  tins,  which  had  contained 
'  Oxo.'  These,  filled  v/ith  melted  blubber  and  a  strand  of  rope 
for  a  wick,  gave  quite  a  good  light.  A  tin  bridge  was  pierced 
to  hold  the  wick  and  laid  across  the  top  of  the  Oxo  tin.  We 
luckily  had  one  or  two  books — '  David  Copperfield,'  4  The  Life 
of  R.  L.  Stevenson,'  and  '  Simon  the  Jester  '  being  the  favour- 
ites— and  after  hoosh  Levick  used  to  read  a  chapter  of  one  of 
them.  Saturday  evenings,  we  each  had  a  stick  of  chocolate,  and 
usually  had  a  concert,  and  Sunday  evening  at  supper  twelve 
lumps  of  sugar  were  served  out  and  we  had  church,  which  con- 
sisted of  my  reading  a  chapter  of  the  Bible,  followed  by  hymns. 
We  had  no  hymn-book,  but  Priestley  remembered  several  hymns, 
while  Abbott,  Browning,  and  Dickason  had  all  been,  at  some 
time  or  other,  in  a  choir,  and  were  responsible  for  one  or  two 
of  the  better  known  psalms.  When  our  library  was  exhausted 
we  started  lectures,  Levick's  on  anatomy  being  especially 
interesting. 

April  12. — A  calm  day.  Priestley  and  I  went  over  to  the 
main  depot  to  get  some  oil  we  had  left  there  on  the  sledges,  and 
in  the  afternoon  I  went  into  the  cove  south  of  us  to  look  for 
seals.  I  saw  one  lying  on  some  new  ice,  but  I  could  not  reach 
him.  I  found  an  old  penguin  egg.  It  was  four  months  old  if  it 
had  been  laid  this  year,  so  I  brought  it  back  on  the  chance  of 
its  having  been  frozen  all  the  time,  but  no  such  luck.  It  was 
hopelessly  bad. 

April  13-17. — Strong  westerly  wind,  bitterly  cold. 

April  20. — The  same  wind  continues,  but  slightly  warmer. 
A  large  piece  had  calved  off  the  Drygalski  ice  tongue.  I  think 
this  northern  face  must  be  altering  very  fast,  as  its  appearance 
does  not  tally  with  the  last  survey. 

April  23. — Another  calm  day.  Browning  and  Dickason  saw 
two  seals  on  floes,  but  were  unable  to  reach  them.  The  sea  is 
still  open.  On  calm  days  a  thin  film  of  ice  forms,  but  disappears 
as  soon  as  the  wind  gets  up.  The  current  also  plays  an  important 
part,  I  am  sure,  as  in  Arrival  Bay,  where  there  is  no  current,  the 
ice  has  formed,  and  is  several  feet  thick,  although  the  winds  are 
just  as  strong. 

April  24,  25,  26. — Blowing  a  hard  blizzard.  On  the  25th 
Dickason  dropped  '  Y  '  deck  watch  and  broke  the  glass,  but 
'  R  '  and  '  C  '  are  going  strong,  and  with  sticking-plaster  and 


BROWNING    AT    THE    IGLOO    DOOR 


EXTERIOR    OF    IGLOO 

(The  dark  heap  on  the  left  consists  of  old  seal  bones  and  refuse  thrown  out  by  the  party  below) 


i9i2]  THE   ENTRANCE   TUNNEL  95 

*  new  skin  '  we  have  mended  Y's  glass.    We  are  very  snug  in  our 
den,  and  hardly  hear  the  wind. 

From  April  27  to  May  5  the  weather  prevented  much  out- 
side work  and  we  spent  most  of  our  time  in  our  bags,  or  work- 
ing at  the  improvement  of  the  long  tunnel  which  led  to  our  home. 
We  are  roofing  this  with  sealskins  on  a  framework  of  bamboos, 
trusting  to  the  drift  to  increase  the  thickness  of  the  roof  and 
so  insulate  us  more  thoroughly  against  the  cold.  We  have  also 
dug  out  one  or  two  alcoves  in  which  to  keep  meat,  blubber,  and 
miscellaneous  stores. 

We  lost  the  sun  to-day  and  shall  not  get  him  back  till 
August  12. 

May  6. — About  three  times  a  week  we  have  to  bring  up 
salt  water  ice  for  the  hoosh,  as  we  have  run  out  of  salt.  This 
morning  Priestley  and  I  went  down  for  sea  ice,  and  as  usual 
were  walking  round  Look-out  Point  to  see  if  any  seals  were 
up,  when  coming  across  the  sea  ice  in  Arrival  Bay  we  saw 
figures.  We  had  often  talked  of  the  possibility  of  the  ship 
being  caught  in  Wood  Bay  and  relieving  us  from  that  direction. 
We  both  got  rather  a  thrill  on  sighting  them,  though  they 
were  so  close  to  the  open  water  as  to  make  it  improbable  that 
they  should  be  anything  but  penguins.  Still  I  ran  back  to  the 
hut  for  my  glasses,  as  through  the  low  drift  they  seemed  tall 
enough  to  be  men. 

Abbott  followed  me  down  with  an  ice-axe,  since  if  they  were 
not  men  they  were  food.  They  turned  out  to  be  four  Emperor 
penguins  heading  into  Arrival  Bay,  so  we  jumped  the  tide  crack, 
all  getting  wet,  and  made  off  to  intercept  them.  We  came  up 
with  them  after  a  long  chase,  and  bagged  the  lot,  Levick  com- 
ing up  just  too  late  for  the  kill.  They  were  in  fine  condition,  and 
it  was  all  we  could  do  to  carry  them  back  to  the  hut,  each  taking 
a  bird.  There  is  no  doubt  our  low  diet  is  making  us  rather  weak. 
We  had  a  full  hoosh  and  an  extra  biscuit  in  honour  of  the 
occasion. 

May  7. — A  blizzard  with  heavy  drift  has  been  blowing  all 
day,  so  it  was  a  good  job  we  got  the  penguins.  We  have  got 
the  roof  on  the  shaft  now,  but  in  these  blizzards  the  entrance 
is  buried  in  snow,  and  we  have  a  job  to  keep  the  shaft  clear. 
Priestley  has  found  his  last  year's  journal,  and  reads  some  to 
us  every  evening. 


96  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [May 

From  now  till  the  end  of  the  month  strong  gales  again  re- 
duced our  outside  work  to  a  minimum,  and  most  of  our  energies 
were  directed  to  improving  our  domestic  routine. 

We  have  now  a  much  better  method  for  cutting  up  the 
meat  for  the  hoosh.  Until  now  we  had  to  take  the  frozen  joints 
and  hack  them  in  pieces  with  an  ice-axe.  We  have  now  fixed 
up  an  empty  biscuit  tin  on  a  bamboo  tripod  over  the  blubber 
fire.  The  small  pieces  of  meat  we  put  in  this  to  thaw;  the 
larger  joints  hang  from  the  bamboo.  In  this  way  they  thaw 
sufficiently  in  the  twenty-four  hours  to  cut  up  with  a  knife,  and  we 
find  this  cleaner  and  more  economical. 

We  celebrated  two  special  occasions  on  this  month,  my  wed- 
ding-day on  the  ioth,  and  the  anniversary,  to  use  a  paradox,  of 
the  commissioning  of  the  hut  on  the  17th,  and  each  time  the 
commissariat  officer  relaxed  his  hold  to  the  extent  of  ten  raisins 
each. 

Levick  is  saving  his  biscuit  to  see  how  it  feels  to  go  without 
cereals  for  a  week.  He  also  wants  to  have  one  real  good  feed 
at  the  end  of  the  week.  His  idea  is  that  by  eating  more  blubber 
he  will  not  feel  the  want  of  the  biscuits  very  much. 

On  May  25  we  had  an  unpleasant  experience  that  might 
have  been  serious.  Drift  had  blocked  the  funnel  and  shaft  so 
that  the  smoke  from  the  blubber  stove  became  unbearable  and 
we  made  up  our  minds  to  put  it  out.  As  a  matter  of  fact  it  went 
out,  and  we  had  the  greatest  difficulty  in  keeping  the  lamps  alight. 
This  ought  to  have  warned  us  the  air  was  bad. 

In  spite  of  this  we  lit  the  primus  stove  to  cook  the  evening 
hoosh,  though  we  had  the  greatest  difficulty  in  making  it  burn. 
Just  before  hoosh  was  ready  it  went  out,  and  all  the  lamps 
followed  suit. 

Three  matches  struck  in  succession  did  the  same  before  we 
realised  there  was  no  air.  I  groped  for  a  spade,  and  crawling 
along  the  shaft  drove  it  through  the  drift,  when  a  match  burned 
immediately,  the  primus  stove  gave  us  no  trouble,  and  all  went 
well;  but  it  was  a  lesson  to  us,  and  in  future  I  kept  a  long 
bamboo  stuck  through  the  chimney,  and  the  wind  keeping  it 
shaking  maintained  an  air  hole.  When  I  fetched  the  bamboo 
it  was  only  about  10  yards  from  the  entrance  of  the  shaft,  yet 
the  drift  was  so  smothering  and  the  night  so  dark,  it  was  with  the 
greatest  difficulty  I  could  find  it. 


i9»]  THE    'COMPLEX'    STOVE  97 

Towards  the  end  of  the  month  the  shaft  was  so  frequently 
blocked  with  snow  that  we  dug  it  out  altogether,  and  then 
made  a  hatch  with  a  sack  and  some  bamboos,  the  coamings 
being  of  snow  blocks,  and  the  effect  of  this  was  at  once  to 
be  seen  in  the  improvement  of  the  ventilation. 

In  spite  of  frequent  frostbites  during  our  few  trips  outside, 
they  have  one  good  point,  for  they  make  us  appreciate  the  shelter 
of  the  hut  and  allow  us  to  forget  the  dirt  and  grease  of  every- 
thing. 

June  1. — Still  blowing  hard,  but  clear.  Open  water  in  the 
bay;  but  when  the  moon  is  in  the  east  we  can  see  the  blink 
of  ice  in  the  Ross  Sea,  so  I  hope  the  bay  will  soon  freeze  over. 
We  have  been  discussing  our  best  route  down,  whether  to  go 
round  the  Drygalski  on  the  sea  ice  or  over  the  tongue.  I  do 
not  myself  think  the  ice  can  be  depended  on  round  the  Drygalski. 
It  runs  out  so  far  into  the  Ross  Sea,  and  even  in  winter  I  be- 
lieve there  is  a  lot  of  movement  far  out. 

On  the  other  hand,  Professor  David  speaks  of  the  Drygalski 
ice  tongue  as  a  bad  place  to  cross  owing  to  rough  ice,  barrancas, 
and  crevasses.  I  think  that  unless  the  sea  ice  looks  very  good  I 
shall  choose  the  ice  tongue. 

June  2. — A  still,  fine  day,  and  we  are  able  to  lay  in  a  good 
stock  of  sea  ice,  blubber,  and  meat  from  our  depots. 

One  of  the  seal  meat  depots  being  on  the  south  side  of  the 
cove,  about  a  mile  away,  it  is  only  on  fine  days  we  can  reach  it 
now  we  get  no  daylight. 

June  7. — The  wind  came  up  again  on  the  night  of  the  2nd, 
and  has  been  blowing  hard  ever  since.  Levick  some  days  ago 
designed  a  new  stove,  which  we  call  the  '  Complex  '  in  opposition 
to  our  old  one,  the  *  Simplex.'  The  reason  the  '  Complex  '  did 
not  catch  on  with  the  rest  of  us  he  put  down  to  professional 
jealousy,  but  to-day  I  came  in  to  find  the  designer  using  the  old 
'  Simplex,'  while  a  much  battered  '  Complex  '  lay  outside  on  the 
drift,  where  it  remained  for  the  rest  of  the  winter. 

June  10. — The  last  two  days  have  been  calm,  and  with  thick 
snow,  but  to-day  the  old  wind  came  back  again,  and  now  it  is 
blowing  a  gale  and  the  drift  is  smothering.  Levick  searched  his 
medicine  case  for  luxuries,  and  found  bottles  of  ginger,  lime- 
juice,  and  citron  tabloids. 

The  limejuice  we  keep  for  sledging,  but  the  two  others  we 

VOL.   II — 7 


9 8  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [June 

serve  out  from  time  to  time.  Our  new  hatch  works  well,  and 
although  it  gets  covered  up,  it  keeps  the  shaft  from  getting 
blocked  with  snow,  while  the  bamboo  in  the  chimney  keeps  us 
an  air  hole. 

June  12. — The  wind  moderated  to-day,  and  we  were  able 
to  get  out  for  sea  ice  and  meat,  and  also  a  fresh  store  of  bones 
from  the  old  carcases  of  seals  which  we  make  use  of  in  our 
blubber  stoves. 

June  1 6. — Being  Sunday  we  get  twelve  lumps  of  sugar  and 
have  two  tabloids  of  ginger  each.  These  chewed  up  with  sugar 
and  a  little  imagination  give  us  preserved  ginger.  The  weather 
during  the  week  has  been  thick  with  snow  when  it  has  not  been 
blowing,  but  we  have  given  up  hoping  for  good  weather,  and  if 
we  can  get  a  lull  every  few  days  to  bring  up  sea  ice  and  blubber, 
we  shall  not  worry. 

June  20. — The  wind  eased  a  little  to-day,  and  I  got  out  for 
a  walk,  but  soon  came  in  with  a  frostbitten  nose.  Our  wind 
clothes  are  torn  and  so  rotten  with  blubber  that  we  have  to  be 
constantly  mending  them.  The  grease  makes  any  snow  or  drift 
stick  to  them,  and  brushing  them  when  we  come  in  from  a  walk 
is  a  long  business.  We  are  feeling  very  excited  about  the  feast 
on  Midwinter  Day,  and  have  been  discussing  the  menu  for  some 
time.  It  will  consist  of  liver  hoosh  and  biscuits,  four  sticks  of 
chocolate,  twenty-five  raisins,  and  a  sip  of  Wincarnis  each. 

June  22. — Midwinter  Day.  The  weather  was  seasonable: 
pitch  dark,  with  wind  and  a  smothering  drift  outside.  We  woke 
up  early,  and  being  too  impatient  to  wait  longer,  turned  out, 
and  for  breakfast  had  our  first  full  hoosh.  In  the  evening 
we  had  another  followed  by  cocoa  with  sugar  in  it,  then  four 
citric  acid  and  two  ginger  tabloids,  finishing  up  the  evening  with 
a  sing-song  and  a  little  tobacco,  which  had  been  saved  for  the 
occasion.  In  addition  four  biscuits  and  four  sticks  of  chocolate 
were  served  out,  so  that  we  retired  to  bed  with  full  stomachs 
once  again,  and  some  of  us  have  even  saved  a  bite  or  two  for 
to-morrow. 

After  Midwinter  Day  time  passed  more  quickly,  and  the 
knowledge  that  every  day  the  sun  was  approaching  us  cheered 
us  immensely.  During  the  next  month  we  have  to  celebrate  no 
less  than  three  birthdays,  and  each  with  its  accompanying  slight 


i9i2]  THE    LARDER    THREATENED  99 

increase  of  ration  gives  us  something  to  look  forward  to  and 
so  helps  to  pass  the  intervening  days. 

The  only  occurrence  which  was  worthy  of  note  before  the 
end  of  June  was  an  unpleasant  one  involving  much  extra  work. 

On  June  29  we  found  our  seal  carcases  nearly  buried  in  salt 
ice,  although  they  were  some  200  yards  back  from  the  seaward 
edge  of  the  icefoot.  Evidently  the  spring  tides  had  been  the 
cause  of  this,  and  we  had  a  lot  of  trouble  digging  the  bodies  out. 

July  4. — -Southerly  wind,  with  snow,  noise  of  pressure  at  sea 
and  the  ice  in  the  bay  breaking  up.  Evidently  there  is  wind  com- 
ing, and  the  sea  ice  which  has  recently  formed  will  go  again  like 
the  rest.  It  is  getting  rather  a  serious  question  as  to  whether 
there  will  be  any  sea  ice  for  us  to  get  down  the  coast  on.  I  only 
hope  that  to  the  south  of  the  Drygalski  ice  tongue,  where  the 
south-easterlies  are  the  prevailing  winds,  we  shall  find  the  ice  has 
held.  Otherwise  it  will  mean  that  we  shall  have  to  go  over  the 
plateau,  climbing  up  by  Mount  Larsen,  and  coming  down  the 
Ferrar  Glacier,  and  if  so  we  cannot  start  until  November,  and 
the  food  will  be  a  problem. 

We  made  a  terrible  discovery  in  the  hoosh  to-night;  a  pen- 
guin's nipper.  Abbott  and  I  prepared  the  hoosh.  I  can  remem- 
ber using  a  flipper  to  clean  the  pot  with,  and  in  the  dark  Abbott 
cannot  have  seen  it  when  he  filled  the  pot.  However,  I  assured 
everyone  it  was  a  fairly  clean  flipper,  and  certainly  the  hoosh  was 
a  good  one. 

July  5. — A  heavy  snowstorm  from  the  S.E.,  the  first  one 
we  have  had  from  that  quarter  since  the  hut  was  ready.  It 
blocked  the  entrance  completely.  Consequently  the  air  got  pretty 
bad.  The  primus  went  out  and  the  lamps  burnt  dimly  until  we 
dug  through  the  drift  and  let  in  fresh  air.  Priestley  and  I  cleared 
the  door,  but  it  was  so  thick  with  snow  it  soon  drifted  up  again. 
It  felt  wonderfully  warm  out  and  we  got  quite  hot  digging.  Dur- 
ing the  night  we  kept  night  watch  two  hours  each,  the  watchman's 
duty  being  to  keep  the  entrance  from  being  blocked,  as  it  was 
useless  trying  to  keep  the  chimney  clear.  In  fact  snow  came 
down  so  fast  it  put  the  blubber  fire  out,  and  the  smoke  rendered 
the  hut  almost  untenable,  so  that  we  had  to  cook  the  evening 
hoosh  with  the  primus  and  use  most  of  our  precious  oil. 

July  7.— Blew  hard  all  night,  drifting  up  the  outer  door  com- 


ioo  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [July 

pletely.  We  cleared  the  shaft,  but  as  our  chimney  was  buried  in 
drift,  we  could  get  no  draught  for  the  blubber  lire,  so  we  had  to 
build  the  chimney  up  with  seal  skin  and  snow  blocks.  All  this 
time  the  drift  was  perfectly  blinding,  although  the  stars  were 
showing  overhead. 

That  evening  we  had  another  '  no  air '  scare,  the  primus 
going  out  and  lamps  burning  dimly  until  we  had  made  air  holes 
with  bamboos.  I  see  we  shall  have  to  be  careful  in  these 
snowstorms. 

July  8. — Still  blowing  hard,  but  not  so  much  drift.  We  had 
an  awful  job  digging  out,  as  the  drift  over  our  door  was  packed 
quite  hard.  This  storm  has  added  2  or  3  feet  of  hard  snow  to 
our  drift.  It  has  made  the  hut  much  warmer,  but  has  buried 
our  outside  meat  depot,  and  Priestley  and  I  have  been  trying  all 
day  to  find  it  without  success. 

July  10. — A  '  Red  Letter '  day.  As  I  was  walking  down  to 
Look  Out  Point  I  saw  a  seal  up.  It  was  getting  late,  so  I  re- 
turned for  the  knives,  and  taking  Abbott  and  Browning  with 
me,  we  ran  down  and  found  2  fat  seals. 

Abbott  had  only  a  short-handled  ice-axe  with  him  and  had 
a  job  to  stun  his  seal.  He  made  several  mis-hits,  and  finally,  as 
the  seal  was  making  for  the  edge,  he  jumped  on  its  back  and 
gave  it  a  blow  on  the  nose  that  stunned  it.  Abbott  then  got  out 
his  knife  and  tried  to  stick  the  seal,  but  the  handle  was  greasy, 
and  his  hands  cold,  and  they  slipped  up  the  blade,  cutting  three 
fingers  badly,  so  that  I  had  to  send  him  back  to  the  hut,  where 
he  arrived  feeling  very  faint  from  loss  of  blood.  It  was  quite 
dark  when  Browning  and  I  finished  cutting  up  the  seals.  They 
were  in  good  condition,  the  blubber  being  very  thick.  It  was 
quite  late  by  the  time  we  got  back,  but  we  were  able  to  have  a 
big  hoosh,  and  we  shall  no  longer  have  to  be  on  half  rations  of 
seal  meat.  We  were  running  things  uncomfortably  close  before. 
We  had  six  lumps  of  sugar  in  honour  of  the  occasion. 

July  12. — Abbott's  fingers  are  badly  hurt.  Levick  is  afraid 
the  tendons  are  cut  and  that  he  will  not  be  able  to  bend  them 
again. 

Browning  and  Dickason  went  for  a  walk  to-day  and  killed 
2  fat  seals  they  found,  so  we  had  another  double  hoosh.  The 
rest  of  us  spent  to-day  and  yesterday  depoting  the  meat  from  the 
first  two  seals. 


i9i2]  A    BIRTHDAY  101 

July  13. — A  lovely  morning.  The  sky  orange  and  saffron 
in  the  north  about  noon.  Spent  the  day  carrying  meat  up.  The 
wind  got  back  to  its  old  quarter  in  the  afternoon,  and  came  on 
to  blow  hard  and  very  cold,  punishing  us  badly  as  we  struggled 
up  with  the  meat. 

The  thin  ice  that  had  formed  over  the  bay  during  the  last 
few  days  blew  out.  I  do  not  think  this  bay  will  ever  be  safe  to 
travel  on,  so  we  shall  have  to  take  the  Drygalski  ice  tongue  route 
and  march  later. 

July  20. — It  has  been  blowing  since  the  14th,  but  being  clear 
we  have  been  able  to  get  out  every  day.  To-day  being  Priestley's 
birthday  we  allowed  him  to  do  no  work  and  served  out  six  lumps 
of  sugar,  a  stick  of  chocolate,  and  twenty  raisins.  A  sing-song 
followed  in  the  evening.     Altogether  a  most  successful  day. 

July  24. — The  wind  got  round  to  the  southward  yesterday 
and  came  on  to  blow  really  hard,  and  is  blowing  great  guns  now. 

July  26. — The  wind  dropped  suddenly,  after  blowing  a  hard 
gale  since  the  24th.  Priestley  and  I  got  down  to  our  last  kill  and 
found  the  bay  ice  had  broken  away  to  within  3  or  4  feet  of  the 
carcases,  but  none  of  the  meat  had  gone,  for  which  we  were  very 
thankful.  In  the  afternoon  it  was  blowing  very  hard  again,  and 
we  all  got  frostbitten  carrying  up  the  meat. 

July  31. — After  two  days  of  warm  snowy  weather  with  a 
moderate  S.E.  breeze  the  wind  has  again  swung  to  the  west  and 
is  blowing  a  gale.  Signs  and  tracks  of  seals  are  numerous  and 
we  have  seen  several  swimming  near  the  ice  foot.  I  think  our 
lean  days  are  over. 

August  3. — It  has  been  blowing  the  same  hard  westerly 
wind,  clear  and  cold.  Browning  got  his  hand  badly  frostbitten 
getting  sea  ice.  It  '  went '  right  up  to  the  wrist  and  he  was  a 
long  time  bringing  it  round. 

I  walked  over  to  the  piedmont  in  the  afternoon  to  look  for 
some  penguins  we  had  depoted  there.  The  bay  ice  had  held 
well.  On  the  piedmont  it  was  blowing  hard,  with  drift,  but  evi- 
dently a  low  level  wind,  as  half-way  up  the  hills  at  an  altitude  of 
about  1000  feet  lay  a  thin  stratus  cloud,  above  which  there  was 
no  drift  off  the  hills.    The  sky  was  very  fine  to  the  north. 

August  7. — To-day  and  yesterday  have  been  very  wann, 
the  weather  overcast,  with  snow  and  drift,  and  our  door  con- 
tinually drifting  up.     Abbott  and  Browning  improved  the  en- 


102  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [August 

trance  by  building  a  torpedo  boat  hatch  out  of  ski  sticks  and 
snow  blocks.  We  felt  the  increased  draught  for  the  blubber 
stove  immediately.  The  heavy  snow  of  the  last  month  has 
buried  our  whole  hut  about  3  ft.  deeper  and  made  it  much 
warmer.  Our  trouble  now  is  the  water  that  drips  from  the  roof 
whenever  we  light  the  blubber  stove.  We  lost  our  depot  of 
sledging  meat  under  the  new  snow,  and  although  we  knew  its 
position  to  within  a  few  yards  it  took  us  a  week's  digging  before 
we  found  it. 

August  10. — To-day  we  celebrated  the  return  of  the  sun, 
but  needless  to  say  we  did  not  see  him  owing  to  a  heavy  gale. 
We  made  merry  to-night  over  brain  and  liver  hoosh,  two  biscuits, 
six  lumps  of  sugar,  and  a  stick  of  chocolate,  finishing  up  with 
sweet  cocoa. 

We  have  built  up  a  high  chimney,  using  snow  blocks,  seal 
skins,  and  an  old  biscuit  tin,  and  we  get  much  less  smoke  inside 
now. 

August  13. — The  wind  which  had  eased  in  the  early  morning 
began  to  freshen  about  10.  In  spite  of  the  gale,  Abbott,  Brown- 
ing, and  myself  started  over  to  the  depot  sledge  in  Arrival  Bay. 
Before  we  got  half-way  across  the  bay  the  wind  and  drift  came 
down,  shutting  out  everything;  but  we  kept  on  and  reached  the 
depot,  leaving  a  note  in  case  a  relief  party  came  up.  Each  of  us 
carried  back  a  load  of  oil,  or  of  mending  material  for  repairing 
sledging  gear. 

On  our  way  back  we  saw  the  rays  of  the  sun  over  the  tops  of 
the  hills,  and  this  made  us  feel  very  cheerful. 

August  14. — Blowing  hard  all  night,  but  eased  in  the  fore- 
noon. Priestley  managed  to  pick  the  brain  out  of  one  of  the 
frozen  seal  carcases.  I  walked  up  the  ridge  at  the  back  of  the 
hut  and  had  the  first  view  of  the  sun.  He  was  shining  through 
a  pink  haze  of  drift  and  looked  lovely.  We  stood  blinking  at 
each  other  for  some  time  and  then  a  frozen  nose  sent  me  home. 

August  15. — Being  a  fine  morning  we  decided  to  bring  the 
iron  runner  sledge  over  from  Arrival  Bay.  Of  course  as  soon 
as  we  started  the  wind  came  down  on  us  again,  but  the  drift  was 
not  so  thick  as  before.  I  foolishly  did  not  put  on  a  helmet,  and 
my  cheeks,  nose,  and  chin  '  went '  rather  badly,  taking  a  long  time 
to  come  round,  though  Priestley  and  Abbott  helped  to  thaw  it 
out  for  me.    This  evening  our  other  sledge  is  completely  buried. 


19"]  DIET   AND    DISEASE  103 

August  20. — My  birthday,  and  as  it  was  my  day  on  as  cook, 
the  others  relieved  me  and  I  spent  a  lazy  day. 

It  has  been  blowing  for  the  last  two  days,  with  open  water, 
but  last  night  the  wind  eased  for  a  few  hours,  and  immediately 
ice  formed  all  over  the  bay. 

Our  birthday  ration  to-night  consists  of  two  biscuits,  twenty 
raisins,  six  lumps  of  sugar  each,  strong  tea,  and  liver  hoosh.  As 
usual  we  finished  up  with  a  sing-song. 

August  28. — The  wind  dropped  last  night  after  blowing  hard 
since  the  20th,  and  we  put  in  a  good  day  carrying  blubber  and 
meat  up  from  the  ice  foot.  There  was  a  cold  breeze  and  I  got 
my  nose  and  feet  frozen.  We  are  all  suffering  much  from  frost- 
bitten feet,  as  our  ski  boots  are  pretty  well  worn  out  and  their 
soles  are  full  of  holes. 

In  the  evening  Abbott  came  running  in  for  my  glasses  as  he 
saw  something  that  looked  like  a  sledge  party  on  the  piedmont, 
but  as  usual  this  proved  a  false  alarm. 

August  31. — Calm  and  very  cold  since  the  28th.  We  had  our 
last  stick  of  chocolate  till  we  start  sledging,  but  to-morrow  we 
start  one  biscuit  a  day  each.  We  have  been  all  this  month  with- 
out biscuit  and  have  felt  none  the  worse,  so  evidently  a  seal  meat 
and  blubber  diet  is  healthy  enough.  Strangely  enough  we  do  not 
get  tired  of  it. 

From  the  top  of  the  hill  I  could  see  sea  ice  on  the  horizon, 
but  the  bay  remains  open. 

September  5. — A  very  heavy  gale  has  been  blowing  since  the 
first,  keeping  all  hands  inside  the  hut.  We  have  had  an  epidemic 
of  enteritis  which  is  hard  to  account  for,  as  we  are  eating  seal 
meat  that  has  never  seen  the  sun,  but  I  think  the  '  oven  '  or  tin 
we  thaw  the  meat  out  in  may  have  had  something  to  do  with  it, 
so  we  have  condemned  it. 

It  is  a  great  pity  getting  this  a  few  weeks  before  starting 
sledging,  as  it  is  making  us  all  so  weak. 

September  6. — A  great  improvement  in  the  public  health  due 
to  Levick's  wisely  curtailing  the  hoosh.  I  have  been  the  least 
affected,  but  Browning  and  Dickason  are  still  very  bad.  I  hope 
this  may  be  the  end  of  it,  as  we  are  still  all  weak,  and  for  the 
first  time  in  the  winter  there  has  been  a  general  gloom.  The 
weather  has  been  vile,  but  improved  to-day. 

September  11. — The  best  day  we  have  had  yet,  bright  and 


104  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [September 

clear  with  a  light  westerly  wind.  Priestley  and  I  went  over  to 
the  depot  moraine  to  look  at  the  geological  specimens  and  put 
them  round  the  bamboo  mark,  but  found  they  had  been  buried 
in  a  drift,  and  after  digging  all  day  had  to  come  away  without 
them.  On  our  way  back  we  dug  out  the  sledges  which  had  been 
nearly  buried.  When  we  got  back  we  found  Abbott  and  Dicka- 
son  had  been  all  round  the  Coves  after  seals,  but  without  success. 
We  are  still  short  of  sledging  meat,  having  only  five  bags  of 
cut  up  meat,  and  we  shall  require  eight.  The  allowance  will  be 
two  mugs  per  day  for  each  man,  and  each  bag  contains  forty-two 
mugs,  or  one  week's  meat  for  each  tent. 

A  thin  scum  of  ice  formed  over  the  bay,  but  even  if  the  sea 
ice  did  form  now  I  should  not  trust  it  for  sledging. 

September  12. — Overcast  and  low  drift.  I  am  repairing 
Levick's  sleeping-bag  and  putting  a  new  flap  on  my  own;  a  slow 
job  when  one  has  to  work  by  the  light  of  a  blubber  lamp. 

September  13. — Browning  and  Dickason  saw  a  seal  with  a 
fish  in  its  mouth,  but  he  would  not  come  up  on  the  ice.  These  two 
are  still  very  bad  with  diarrhoea,  and  we  are  giving  them  fresh 
water  hoosh  to  see  if  that  does  any  good. 

September  14. — Browning  was  very  bad  in  the  night.  I  wish 
we  had  a  change  of  diet  to  give  him.  He  has  been  ill,  off  and 
on,  for  five  months  now  and  has  been  very  cheerful  through  it 
all.  Priestley  and  Dickason  are  also  down  with  enteritis  but  are 
not  so  bad.  We  have  some  Oxo  and  I  shall  try  Browning  on 
this  before  sledging.  The  rest  of  us  are  feeling  fairly  fit.  At  the 
beginning  of  this  month  we  started  Swedish  exercises,  and  will 
keep  it  up  until  we  start  sledging,  as  our  leg  muscles  have  shrunk 
to  nothing.  As  the  hut  is  not  nearly  6  feet  high  we  are  obliged 
to  do  these  exercises  and  all  our  other  work  without  standing 
upright,  and  this  has  given  rise  to  what  we  called  the  '  Igloo 
Back,'  which  is  caused  by  the  stretching  of  the  ligaments  round 
the  spine  and  is  very  painful. 

September  17. — A  fine  morning.  Priestley  and  Abbott  went 
over  to  the  moraine  depot  to  dig  for  the  specimens,  while  Dicka- 
son and  I  dug  out  the  sledges  which  had  been  buried  again. 
After  a  hard  day's  work  we  got  our  sledges  clear,  and  brought 
up  the  tent  poles  to  shorten  and  repair  for  sledging.  Getting 
back  late  we  heard  that  Priestley  had  found  a  seal,  which  he  and 
Browning  killed  and  cut  up.    There  has  been  great  rejoicing  to- 


ICE    CAVE 


[See  p.  99 


GROUP    AFTER   WINTER    IN    IGLOO 


i9i2]  PENGUIN    MEAT  105 

night,  for  this  will  complete  our  sledging  provisions.  We  served 
out  an  extra  biscuit  for  supper.  The  fine  day  has  made  us  all 
impatient  to  start. 

September  19. — Snowing  all  day,  but  we  had  plenty  of  work 
to  do  in  the  hut,  sewing  bags  and  repairing  sledge  gear.  The 
sea  is  freezing  over  again. 

September  20. — Priestley  and  Abbott  went  over  to  the  depot 
moraine  to  dig  for  the  precious  specimens,  the  rest  of  us  sewing 
or  cutting  up  meat  for  the  journey.  In  the  afternoon  I  walked 
over  and  joined  Priestley.  I  found  them  very  disappointed, 
having  been  digging  all  day  without  success.  I  thought  they  were 
digging  too  far  to  the  westward,  so  I  tried  sinking  pits  at  the 
east  end  of  the  drift,  and  after  about  half  an  hour's  work,  found 
the  specimens.  We  carried  them  all  to  the  moraine  and  stacked 
them  round  the  bamboo  mark.  We  got  back  late  and  found  the 
others  cutting  up  the  last  bag  of  sledging  meat. 

Served  out  one  biscuit  and  six  lumps  of  sugar  each  and  had 
seal's  brain  in  the  hoosh. 

September  21. — A  fine  morning;  Levick  and  Abbott  dug  out 
the  last  sledge,  but  had  to  come  back  in  the  afternoon,  as  it 
came  on  to  snow  and  blow  hard.  I  got  noon  sights  for  time 
and  found  my  watch  had  kept  a  fairly  even  rate,  which  was 
satisfactory. 

September  24. — We  were  able  to  start  carrying  meat,  &c, 
down  to  the  sledges  to-day  as  it  was  fine.  The  weather  the  two 
previous  days  had  been  very  bad.  Browning  has  had  another 
acute  attack  of  dysentery  and  we  cannot  march  until  he  is  better. 

On  my  way  back  from  the  sledges  I  saw  some  fresh  guano 
on  the  sea  ice,  and  looking  about  saw  an  Emperor  penguin.  I 
killed  it  and  we  carried  it  up  to  the  hut;  I  hope  it  may  do  Brown- 
ing good,  as  the  seal  meat  certainly  does  not  agree  with  him. 
We  are  all  ready  to  start  now  as  soon  as  he  is  fit  to  walk,  but  it 
is  blowing  a  gale  to-night. 

September  27. — Still  blowing,  but  clear.  We  found  two  seals 
up  under  the  lee  of  some  pressure,  and  killed  one  for  extra  meat; 
the  other  was  the  first  we  have  been  able  to  let  go  since  the  last 
autumn. 

September  28. — Strong  south-west  wind  and  overcast  in 
the  morning,  clearing  and  coming  out  finer  in  the  late  noon. 
Priestley  saw  six  Emperors.    We  got  five  of  them.     I  was  very 


106  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [September 

glad  to  get  these,  as  they  seem  to  agree  with  Browning  much 
better  than  seal.  He  has  been  bad  again  and  is  getting  pessi- 
mistic about  himself. 

September  29. — Overhauled  the  sledge  runners,  scraping 
and  waxing  them.  We  also  carried  down  all  the  equipment  that 
was  ready.  We  are  taking  the  12-ft.  sledge  and  the  10-ft.,  the 
latter  being  fitted  with  iron  runners,  which  will  be  a  great  help 
on  sea  ice.    The  weather  was  overcast,  with  north-west  wind. 

September  30. — A  calm  morning.  As  Dickason  and  Brown- 
ing were  both  better  we  abandoned  the  igloo  after  breakfast. 
Carrying  down  the  rest  of  our  gear  occupied  four  of  us  most  of 
the  day,  and  I  left  the  two  sick  men  in  the  hut,  cleaning  the 
cookers,  until  the  last  load. 

It  came  on  very  thick  with  snow  in  the  afternoon  and  it  was 
6.30  p.m.  before  we  pulled  out.  Snow  drifts  made  the  pulling 
heavy  and  by  8.30  we  had  only  pulled  a  mile,  and  as  we  were  all 
pretty  tired  after  our  long  day's  carrying  we  camped.  Dickason 
was  bad  in  the  night,  but  we  are  all  very  cheerful  at  being  on  the 
march  again,  and  the  change  from  the  dirt  and  dark  of  the 
igloo  will  do  us  all  good.  Our  sledging  rations  also  seemed 
sumptuous,  the  daily  ration  per  man  being: 

2  pannikins  of  meat.  1  stick  of  chocolate. 
Y^  pannikin  of  blubber.  8  lumps  of  sugar. 

1  pannikin  of  cocoa.  A  little  pemmican. 

3  biscuits. 

At  the  commencement  of  the  winter  we  had  some  spare  wind 
clothing,  sweaters,  mits,  and  under  clothing,  which  we  had  landed 
from  the  ship.  This  I  put  on  one  side  for  the  journey  down  and 
only  issued  it  before  leaving  the  igloo.  There  was  not  enough 
of  everything  to  go  round,  but  by  making  the  clothes  into  lots 
and  drawing  for  them  we  all  got  something.  To  keep  them  clean 
we  only  changed  into  them  just  before  leaving  the  igloo,  but  the 
luxury  of  getting  into  dry  clean  clothing  after  the  greasy  rags  we 
discarded  was  indescribable.  We  had  been  in  the  same  clothes 
for  nine  months,  carrying,  cooking,  and  handling  blubber,  and  all 
our  garments  were  black  and  soaked  through  and  through  with 
grease.  We  were  fairly  well  off  for  paraffin  as  we  had  only  used 
the  primus  to  cook  our  morning  hoosh.  Dickason's  generosity 
in  volunteering  to  work  the  primus  always  had  also  made  a  lot 


i9i2]  A   TIRING    START  107 

of  difference,  as  he  handles  the  stove  with  more  economy  than 
any  other  of  us. 

October  1. — We  turned  out  at  5.30  A.M.  The  morning  was 
still  and  overcast,  but  with  the  sun  trying  to  break  through.  We 
got  away  by  7,  but  made  slow  progress,  finding  the  drifts  very 
heavy.  My  unit  consisted  of  Priestley,  Dickason,  and  myself, 
with  the  1 2-ft.  sledge,  and  as  Levick  had  the  iron  runner  sledge 
we  had  the  heavier  load.  We  had  to  relay  most  of  the  day,  as 
Dickason  could  pull  very  little  and  Browning  not  at  all.  In  fact 
the  latter  had  to  rest  constantly,  so  our  progress  was  slow,  and 
by  lunch  time  we  had  only  made  2j4  miles.  Our  supply  of  oil 
would  not  run  to  hot  lunch,  so  we  had  a  cold  lunch  sitting 
under  the  lee  of  the  sledge.  Before  leaving  the  igloo  we  had 
cooked  some  seal  steaks  over  the  blubber  fire,  but  when  ex- 
amined in  the  light  of  day  these  looked  so  filthy  and  distasteful, 
that  we  discarded  them  in  favour  of  shreds  of  raw  penguin  and 
seal. 

The  walking  had  made  both  Dickason  and  Browning  much 
worse,  so  I  had  to  camp  at  6.30  p.m.,  having  only  done  5  miles. 
We  are  all  very  tired,  but  in  good  spirits  at  leaving  the  dirt  and 
squalor  of  the  hut  behind.  A  lovely  evening  and  every  appear- 
ance of  a  fine  day  to-morrow. 

October  2. — A  fine  morning  when  we  turned  out  at  5.30. 
The  surface  was  rather  better  and  we  did  not  have  to  relay,  but 
it  was  all  we  could  do  to  move  the  sledges.  About  1 1  o'clock 
we  got  on  to  a  blue  ice  surface  and  worked  our  way  through  a 
loose  moraine.  A  bitter  wind  from  the  plateau  got  up  about 
noon,  bringing  drift  that  in  the  squalls  was  so  thick  one  could 
not  see  more  than  a  few  yards.  The  wind  was  fair,  however,  and 
we  raced  along  over  the  blue  ice  until  we  suddenly  came  to  a 
huge  crevasse  barring  our  passage.  We  proceeded  cautiously 
along  its  edge  to  the  eastward  until  we  found  a  place  where  it 
was  snow  bridged,  and  then  leaving  the  sledges  with  Levick  and 
Browning,  the  rest  of  us  roped  up  and  went  across,  testing  it 
with  our  ice-axes  as  we  advanced. 

The  snow  bridge  was  175  paces  across,  and  except  for  one 
place  on  the  weather  side  it  seemed  perfectly  safe.  I  should 
like  to  have  stayed  and  examined  it,  as  from  its  width  it  had 
more  the  appearance  of  an  inlet  of  the  sea  ending  in  a  wide 
crevasse,  but  the  gale  was  rising  and  the  drifting  snow  so  thick 


108  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [October 

I  thought  it  best  to  get  the  sledges  across  and  push  on;  the  sur- 
face was  good  the  other  side,  and  with  the  gale  behind  us,  we 
raced  along,  trusting  to  the  wind  to  steer  by,  as  it  was  impossible 
to  see  where  we  were  going. 

The  pace  was  too  much  for  poor  Browning,  who  was  very 
bad  again,  and  we  had  to  camp  at  5.30,  having  done  about  8-5 
miles.  Dickason,  I  am  thankful  to  say,  is  better  and  was  able  to 
pull  to-day. 

The  wind  dropped  after  supper,  leaving  us  a  lovely  but  a 
very  cold  evening. 

October  3. — A  very  cold  night,  the  wind  getting  up  again  at 
3  a.m.  and  bringing  drift.  Levick  had  trouble  with  his  primus 
and  we  did  not  get  away  till  9  A.M.  Soft  snowdrifts  made  the 
going  very  slow  and  heavy,  until  just  before  noon,  when  we  got 
on  ice  again  among  rocks.  These  we  examined,  but  found  no 
sandstone.  The  drift  was  very  thick,  and,  about  2,  getting  on 
undulating  broken  ice,  I  thought  it  advisable  to  pitch  one  tent, 
lunch,  and  wait  for  the  weather  to  clear.  About  3.30  the  wind 
became  rather  worse,  so  we  pitched  the  other  tent  and  camped, 
the  distance  covered  in  the  day  being  3  miles.  Browning  looked 
very  bad,  but  Dickason's  condition  is  still  improving. 

October  4. — Blowing  hard,  with  blinding  drift.  We  de- 
layed breakfast  until  9  A.M.,  hoping  it  would  clear,  but  as  there 
was  no  improvement  in  the  weather  we  turned  in  again,  and  as 
we  were  not  marching  we  went  on  half  rations  of  biscuit.  Very 
cold. 

October  5. — Turned  out  at  six  to  find  a  slight  improvement, 
so  had  breakfast;  but  before  we  finished  the  wind  and  drift  came 
down  on  us  again  as  bad  as  ever,  so  that  there  was  nothing  for 
it  but  to  coil  down  in  our  bags  and  wait.  About  noon  the  weather 
improved  and  we  were  off.  The  surface  soon  changed  for  the 
better  and  we  made  good  way  through  some  more  scattered  mo- 
raines which  came  from  the  Reeves  Glacier.  We  noticed  a 
marked  open  water  sky  to  our  left  and  front  and  pulled  on  till 
6  p.m.,  hoping  to  make  the  inlet,  as  we  wanted  salt  ice  for  the 
hoosh,  but  without  attaining  our  object.  It  is  impossible  to  pull 
longer,  as  the  days  are  still  short  and  we  have  no  candles.  We 
have  made  about  six  miles. 

October  6. — We  turned  out  at  5.45  to  find  the  weather  thick, 
but  blue  sky  to  the  northward.    We  were  back  on  a  snow  surface 


i»v    *  ** 


PENGUINS    DIVING 


f 


PENGUINS    DIVING 


i9i2]  AN    AMUSING   INCIDENT  109 

again,  so  we  took  the  precaution  of  waxing  the  runners,  with 
good  results. 

It  was  warm  work  pulling  through  the  soft  snow  and  we  were 
glad  to  stop  for  lunch.  We  could  make  out  the  edge  of  the  pied- 
mont quite  plainly,  but  could  see  nothing  of  the  inlet  until  about 
2  P.M.,  when  we  saw  the  mouth  of  it.  A  broad  open  water  lead 
several  miles  wide  seemed  to  extend  right  along  the  barrier  edge, 
but  in  the  inlet  itself  the  sea  was  frozen  over.  The  snow  was  soft 
and  the  pulling  very  heavy,  so  it  was  6  o'clock  before  we  reached 
camp,  on  the  north  side  of  the  inlet,  about  fifty  yards  from  the 
cliff.  Several  seals  and  penguins  were  up  on  the  sea  ice,  while 
snow  drifts  gave  us  an  easy  road  down  from  the  barrier.  The 
surface  of  the  piedmont  was  broken  by  small  crevasses  here,  one 
running  right  under  the  tent.  We  all  enjoyed  our  salt  water 
hoosh  and  turned  in  very  tired.  Browning  rather  better.  Dicka- 
son  quite  recovered.    A  lovely  evening.    Distance  8-5  miles. 

October  7. — A  beautiful  morning  after  a  comparatively 
warm  night.  We  were  away  soon  after  8,  down  the  snow  drift 
slope  and  over  a  tide  crack  4  ft.  wide.  The  sea  ice  proved  very 
heavy  going,  as  it  was  covered  with  deep  crusted  snow  through 
which  we  had  a  job  to  move  the  sledges.  We  saw  rather  an 
amusing  incident  here.  A  number  of  seals  were  lying  along  the 
tide  crack,  and  just  after  we  had  crossed  we  saw  one  more 
struggle  up  on  the  ice  and  go  to  sleep  with  her  tail  within  a  few 
inches  of  the  tide  crack.  She  had  hardly  gone  to  sleep  when  a 
head  came  cautiously  up,  saw  her,  dipped  down  again,  then  com- 
ing cautiously  up  again,  bit  her  hard.  The  poor  beast  squealed, 
hit  at  her  assailant  several  times  with  her  tail  and  wriggled  off 
as  fast  as  she  could  across  the  ice,  but  the  practical  joker  did  not 
follow  up  the  attack. 

Beyond  a  stiff  pull  in  deep  snow  we  had  no  difficulty  in  get- 
ting our  sledges  up  the  snow  drift  and  on  the  south  cliff.  Once 
on  top  we  were  troubled  with  a  rather  deep  crusted  snow  surface, 
with  long  undulations  which  were  fairly  hard  and  good  going  on 
the  summits,  but  with  deep  soft  snow  in  the  valleys.  Curious 
conical  mounds  of  blue  ice  showed  up  here  and  there.  These  are 
survivals,  I  imagine,  of  the  seracs  and  icefalls  visible  on  our 
right  hand  where  the  David  Glacier  flows  down  from  the  moun- 
tains, making  a  big  disturbance.  To  avoid  these  we  had  to  steer 
in  a  south-easterly  direction.     The  day  was  fine  but  cold  and 


110  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [October 

we  were  all  in  good  spirits,  as  even  if  we  could  not  get  down  to 
Cape  Evans  by  the  sea  ice,  we  could  make  certain  of  getting 
plenty  of  food  here.    Distance  about  6  miles. 

October  8. — Bright  sun  but  cold  westerly  wind  with  low 
drift  when  we  turned  out  at  5.30.  We  were  away  by  8  and  the 
going  was  much  the  same  as  yesterday,  only  the  ice  hummocks 
were  more  numerous  and  the  undulations  steeper.  In  the  after- 
noon the  sun  went  behind  nimbus  haze  and  the  light  got  very  bad 
indeed,  and  was  the  cause  of  us  nearly  coming  to  grief.  The 
snow  was  very  wind-blown  and  slippery  on  the  top  of  the  undula- 
tions, but  soft  in  the  hollows,  and  we  had  been  racing  down  the 
slopes  to  help  us  through  the  soft  snow.  Soon  after  4  the  light 
got  so  bad  we  could  not  see  where  we  were  stepping,  and  when 
well  on  our  way  down  one  of  these  slopes,  I  thought  I  saw  a 
crevasse  in  front,  so  swung  the  sledge,  and  was  going  ahead  to 
reconnoitre,  when  I  found  we  were  on  the  edge  of  a  steep  slope 
about  20  ft.  high,  which  went  sheer  down  into  a  barranca.  We 
had  to  get  the  sledges  up  the  slippery  slope  again,  no  easy  job, 
and  try  round.  After  about  a  mile  we  found  a  place  we  could 
cross,  but  the  delays  of  roping  up  to  prospect  made  our  day's 
march  small.  Dickason  is  bad  again.  I  suppose  it  must  be  the 
heavy  pulling.  Distance  6  miles.  The  weather  thick,  with  slight 
snow. 

October  9. — I  turned  out  to  look  at  the  weather  at  4  A.M. 
and  found  it  snowing  and  so  thick  I  could  only  just  see  the  other 
tent. 

By  7  it  was  better  though  still  thick,  so  after  breakfast  we 
started  and  steered  a  more  easterly  course  to  try  and  get  out 
of  this  broken  country.  The  light  and  surface  were  vile,  while  a 
cold  westerly  wind  did  not  improve  matters.  We  found  our- 
selves in  country  just  as  bad,  so  steered  due  south,  and  went 
straight  ahead,  but  even  going  as  cautiously  as  we  could  we 
nearly  repeated  yesterday's  experience,  stopping  the  sledge  just 
in  time  on  the  edge  of  the  cliff  and  having  to  work  back  up  the 
slope  and  round.  The  wind  had  increased  to  a  gale  with  drift 
to  add  to  our  discomfort.  About  4  o'clock,  however,  the  sun 
came  out,  the  wind  eased,  and  we  got  into  better  country.  Just 
before  camping,  from  the  top  of  one  of  the  ridges,  I  got  a  view 
of  the  coast  line  south  of  the  Drygalski,  and  the  sea  ice  in  Geikie 
Inlet,  so  I  hope  the  worst  of  the  Drygalski  is  past.     Dickason 


1914  MT.    EREBUS   IN    SIGHT  m 

is  much  better,  but  Browning  is  very  bad  again.  We  camped 
soon  after  6,  all  very  tired.     Distance  6  miles. 

October  io. — Turned  out  at  5  A.M.  to  find  a  lovely  day  with 
bright  sun  but  a  cold  wind.  At  7.30  just  after  starting  a  low 
drift  got  up  and  the  wind  was  freshening  but  bitterly  cold,  so 
cold  in  fact  that  at  lunchtime  we  only  stopped  long  enough  to 
eat  some  frozen  meat  and  blubber,  and  then  were  off  again  over 
these  endless  undulations  that  give  one  the  impression  of  always 
going  up  hill.  At  last  on  one  of  the  undulations  we  saw  sea  ice 
to  the  southward,  and  a  few  minutes  afterwards  Dickason 
pointed  to  a  white  mass,  looking  like  a  cloud,  which  I  made  out 
to  be  Mount  Erebus.  While  crossing  another  long  undulation 
about  three-quarters  of  a  mile  across,  we  came  to  a  cliff  barring 
our  passage,  but  by  bearing  to  the  east,  we  found  a  place  where 
we  could  cross  the  big  crevasse  that  lay  in  front  of  it  by  a  snow 
drift.  The  crevasse  was  about  10  yards  wide,  but  well  bridged. 
Once  on  top  we  saw  the  sea  ice  below  us  and  about  a  mile  and  a 
half  ahead.  The  drift  which  had  been  blinding  in  the  squalls 
now  cleared  and  we  had  a  good  view. 

The  sea  ice  seemed  fast  as  far  as  we  could  see  in  all  direc- 
tions and  this  was  a  great  relief  to  us.  The  Drygalski  had  not 
been  so  formidable  as  I  expected  in  spite  of  the  broken  ice;  we 
only  broke  through  into  a  few  crevasses,  although  I  have  no 
doubt  there  are  plenty  there. 

They  are  well  bridged  after  the  winter.  We  had  no  trouble 
in  getting  down  to  the  sea  ice,  as  hard  snow  drifts  completely  hid 
the  south  cliff.  At  6  p.m.  we  camped,  all  tired  but  very  pleased 
at  having  the  Drygalski  behind  us  and  good  sea  ice  in  front.  We 
had  an  extra  biscuit  and  a  stick  of  chocolate  to  celebrate  the 
occasion.  The  night  was  very  cold  but  fine.  We  have  crossed 
to  the  westward  of  David's  route. 

I  think  distance  about  7  miles. 

October  11. — Westerly  wind  with  heavy  drift,  and  very  cold. 
As  there  was  no  improvement  after  breakfast  we  turned  in  again. 
About  2  p.m.  a  solitary  Emperor  penguin  came  and  called  out- 
side the  tent.  We  went  outside  and  killed  and  butchered  him; 
his  heart  and  liver  are  in  the  hoosh  pot  as  I  write  this.  The  re- 
mainder of  his  flesh,  which  is  not  bad  raw  when  it  is  frozen,  we 
cut  up  into  thin  strips  to  eat  on  the  march.  It  was  very  cold  work 
cutting  him  up  in  the  wind. 


112  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [October 

The  sun  came  out  and  the  wind  and  drift  eased  in  the  even- 
ing, so  Abbott  and  I  repacked  the  sledges,  securing  the  wooden 
one  on  top  of  the  iron-runner  sledge.  We  find  this  the  best  ar- 
rangement for  sea  ice,  although  the  resultant  load  is  rather  top 
heavy.  It  was  very  cold  and  we  got  our  hands  very  badly 
frostbitten. 

October  12. — A  cold  wind  but  clear  when  we  turned  out  at 
4.30  A.M. 

We  were  off  before  7  over  a  fair  surface.  Soon  after  lunch 
we  had  some  trouble  with  pressure  ice,  resulting  in  one  upset. 
A  lovely  evening  when  we  camped  that  night,  Erebus  and  Mel- 
bourne both  being  in  sight.  Browning  was  better  but  still  had 
bad  cramping  pains  in  his  stomach.     Distance  1 1  miles. 

October  13. — A  disappointing  day,  overcast,  light  northerly 
airs,  and  not  much  pressure,  but  a  very  heavy  drag  through  deep 
crusted  snow.  We  were  all  very  tired  when  we  camped.  Dis- 
tance 7  miles.  We  passed  a  track  which  at  first  we  thought  had 
been  left  by  a  sledge  but  afterwards  proved  to  be  that  of  a  seal. 

October  14. — The  weather  was  much  the  same  to-day  as  yes- 
terday, but  the  surface  was  better.  We  pulled  in  shore  to  avoid 
heavy  pressure  which  ran  across  our  bows.  A  haze  of  snow 
crystals  obscured  the  land,  and  this  made  the  journey  tedious 
and  we  were  glad  to  camp,  having  done  about  10  miles,  but  not 
I  fear  half  that  on  our  course.  The  prevailing  ridges  run  about 
N.N.E. 

October  15. — A  fine  morning,  but  cold  wind  from  south.  We 
turned  out  at  4.45  and  for  the  first  two  hours  made  good  prog- 
ress. The  sun  came  out  quite  hot  and  the  wind  dropped  in  the 
middle  of  the  day,  so  that  we  were  able  to  spend  an  hour  over 
lunch.  The  mirage  was  wonderful,  the  pressure  to  the  south- 
ward being  seen  inverted  in  the  sky. 

We  came  across  more  tracks,  which  I  think  must  be  seal.  It 
is  curious  that  we  have  seen  no  animals ;  I  can  only  account  for  it 
by  presuming  that  this  is  old  ice  with  no  cracks.  Soon  after  4 
we  had  to  cross  pressure  ridges,  for  though  we  had  been  dodging 
them  since  lunch,  they  now  became  so  high  we  had  to  camp  and 
repack  sledges.  We  shall  have  to  relay  the  sledges  to-morrow, 
taking  them  over  one  at  a  time. 

Distance  about  10  miles,  but  not  half  that  on  our  course.  A 
clear  but  cold  evening. 


A    WEDDELL    SEAL    ABOUT    TO    DIVE 


A    WEDDELL    SEAL    ON    THE    BEACH 


i9i2]  THE    NORDENSKIOLD  113 

October  16. — I  suppose  every  now  and  then  we  swallow  a 
bit  of  bad  meat,  and  whether  from  that  reason  or  some  other, 
I  was  very  bad  last  night  with  cramp  and  pains  in  the  stomach, 
and  this  morning  I  am  feeling  cold  and  sick.  Levick  gave  me 
some  medicine  that  put  new  life  into  me.  We  have  had  a  weari- 
some day  of  relaying,  with  frequent  upsets,  and  have  been  cut- 
ting a  path  through  high  and  heavy  pressure  ice,  half  hidden 
under  a  soft  snow  into  which  we  fell  and  floundered  about. 

At  5.30  the  light  was  so  bad  that  I  camped.  Distance  per- 
haps 3  miles,  but  it  is  impossible  to  gauge  accurately  with  this 
sort  of  travelling. 

October  17. — Turned  out  at  5.15  to  find  snow  falling,  and 
by  the  time  we  had  finished  breakfast  a  southerly  gale  was  blow- 
ing, with  heavy  drift,  and  it  was  impossible  to  march,  so  we 
turned  in  and  spent  the  day  in  our  bags. 

October  18. — The  wind  dropped  in  the  night  and  the  sky 
cleared  about  6,  leaving  a  fine  day.  We  have  had  another  heavy 
day's  work  relaying  over  bad  pressure,  but  yesterday's  rest  has 
done  us  all  a  lot  of  good  and  we  went  at  it  quite  fresh.  We  saw 
the  Nordenskiold  ice  tongue  ahead  miraged  up  and  looking  quite 
close.  About  5  p.m.  we  came  to  the  end  of  this  infernal  pres- 
sure, and  saw  smooth  surface  between  us  and  the  tongue  end,  and 
by  6.30  camped  on  the  smooth  ice.  I  had  noticed  a  seal  up  about 
a  mile  west  of  us  as  we  were  relaying  over  the  last  of  the  pres- 
sure, so  after  we  had  camped  I  went  away  on  ski  to  look  for  him. 

After  going  about  2  miles  I  struck  his  tracks  and  followed 
them  till  they  disappeared  down  a  hole.  Through  the  seal  hole 
I  tried  to  feel  the  lower  edge  of  the  ice  but  was  unable  to  do  so. 
I  take  it  therefore  that  the  ice  must  be  at  least  3  feet  thick.  This 
smooth  surface  we  are  on  must  be  due,  I  think,  to  the  current 
coming  up  under  the  Nordenskiold,  causing  this  part  of  the  sea 
to  freeze  over  late  in  the  season. 

A  cold  evening  with  slight  snow.  Approximate  distance  6 
miles. 

October  19. — A  fine  morning  but  colder.  We  turned  out  at 
3.30,  and  after  breakfast  Levick,  Abbott,  and  Browning  went  to 
the  seal  hole  while  we  packed  and  started  the  sledges.  They 
were  successful  this  time  and  caught  the  seal  asleep  by  the  hole, 
and  soon  had  him  cut  up  and  packed  on  one  of  the  sledges.  At 
10  we  stopped  for  lunch.     The  day  was  lovely  for  marching, 

VOL.    II — 8 


II4  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [October 

being  clear  and  cold,  but  the  surface  was  vile;  no  pressure,  but 
soft  sandy  snow.  We  halted  for  a  second  lunch  of  raw  seal  at 
3.30  P.M.  Levick,  Abbott,  and  Browning  like  it,  the  rest  of  us 
do  not.  We  camped  at  6.15,  all  very  tired.  Distance  9  miles. 
A  lovely  evening. 

October  20. — A  lovely  morning,  clear,  calm,  and  cold.  A 
stiff  pull  over  a  heavy  surface  brought  us  to  the  foot  of  the  cliff 
of  the  Nordenskiold  ice  tongue.  The  cliff  here  is  about  50  feet 
high  and  very  much  indented.  A  few  miles  to  the  east  a  deep 
bay  or  inlet  ran  in  to  the  southward. 

A  steep  snow  drift  enabled  us  to  get  on  the  ice  tongue,  but 
we  had  to  unpack  the  sledges  and  carry  most  of  the  gear  up,  after 
hauling  the  sledges  up  to  the  top  with  the  Alpine  rope,  as  it  was 
so  steep. 

We  camped  on  the  top  at  about  5  P.M.  Priestley,  Levick,  and 
I  then  roped  up  and  went  on  to  see  what  the  going  was  like  for 
the  next  day. 

We  found  long  shallow  undulations,  and  as  far  as  we  could 
see  no  crevasses.  We  shall  cross  it  a  long  way  inside  David's 
route.  Curiously  enough  there  was  hardly  any  tide  crack  be- 
tween the  sea  ice  and  the  tongue. 

Several  seals  were  in  sight,  but  we  did  not  kill  any,  as  I  am 
sure  we  shall  get  any  amount  south  of  this  tongue.  The  tongue 
seems  to  be  ice  to  within  2  feet  of  the  top  and  the  surface  is 
rather  a  soft  snow.     Distance  6  miles. 

October  21. — Turning  out  at  5.30  A.M.  we  depoted  all  un- 
necessary gear  and  started  considerably  lighter.  Should  we  have 
to  turn  back  we  can  always  pick  this  depot  up  easily.  The  day 
was  lovely,  but  rather  warm  for  pulling,  and  the  surface  soft  but 
not  bad  going.  We  came  across  no  crevasses  and  by  3.30  ran 
down  an  easy  slope  to  the  sea  ice.  The  snow  on  the  latter  was 
rather  deep.  We  lashed  the  wooden  runner  sledge  on  the  one 
with  the  iron  runners  and  pulled  on  till  about  6,  when  we  camped. 

October  22. — A  nice  morning,  but  soon  after  starting  a  cold 
southerly  wind  got  up,  resulting  in  several  frostbitten  noses. 
We  were  travelling  over  pressure  well  hidden  by  soft  snow.  In 
the  afternoon  we  had  some  excitement  seeing  a  dark  conical  ob- 
ject ahead,  much  the  same  shape  as  a  tent.  As  Browning  was 
rather  bad,  we  left  him  with  Dickason  and  Abbott  to  rest  with 
the  sledges,  while  Levick,  Priestley,  and  I  went  on  to  look  at  it, 


i9i2]  SEALS    FOUND  115 

but  after  going  about  a  mile  we  made  it  out  to  be  some  black  grit 
blown  on  to  a  conical  piece  of  ice.  On  returning  to  the  sledges 
we  pulled  in  shore  to  try  and  get  a  better  surface,  but  had  to 
camp  at  5  P.M.  as  Browning  was  so  bad.  Distance  about  6  miles. 
We  are  about  1  mile  from  land,  which  appears  to  be  low  ice- 
covered  foot-hills. 

October  23. — I  was  bad  in  the  night  and  did  not  wake  till 
6.30.  The  day  was  warmer,  but  I  feel  very  cold  and  rather  weak 
and  slack.  The  light  was  bad,  but  we  made  fair  progress. 
Passed  inside  a  number  of  stranded  bergs  evidently  broken  off 
from  the  piedmont.  About  4  p.m.  we  saw  a  seal  near  a  stranded 
berg  and  we  camped  early,  in  order  to  kill  and  cut  him  up. 
There  were  tracks  of  several  more  near  the  berg,  so  I  think  we 
are  coming  to  the  land  of  plenty.  A  brain  and  liver  hoosh  did  us 
all  good.  We  are  all  feeling  slack  and  stale.  Distance  6  miles. 
We  had  to  reduce  to  two  biscuits  per  day  owing  to  slow  progress. 

October  24. — A  lovely  morning,  clear  and  calm  with  a  few 
clouds  over  the  mountains.  While  we  were  packing  the  sledges 
Browning  went  to  the  seal  hole,  but  there  were  none  up.  The 
surface  was  heavy  crusted  snow  with  belts  of  pressure.  During 
the  day  we  passed  a  large  number  of  stranded  bergs  and  any 
amount  of  seals  up  round  them,  many  of  them  with  young. 

Our  route  lay  along  a  piedmont,  evidently  aground,  judging 
by  the  steep  slopes  and  crevasses  in  places.  Soon  after  4  p.m. 
we  opened  out  a  wide  bay  which  I  made  out  to  be  Tripp  Bay. 
After  this  the  surface  improved.  After  camping,  Levick  and 
Abbott  killed  and  cut  up  a  seal. 

There  was  a  curious  line  of  stranded  bergs  and  pressure  run- 
ning parallel  to  the  coast  and  about  two  miles  off,  which  looks 
as  if  there  might  be  a  shoal  there.  Our  distance  to-day  about  7 
miles. 

October  25. — Both  Dickason  and  I  had  a  bad  night  and  I 
felt  very  cold  when  I  turned  out  at  about  5  a.m.  We  soon  got 
warm,  however,  for  the  snow  drifts  between  the  pressure  were 
awful.  We  made  out  Tripp  Island  at  the  head  of  the  bay  in  the 
afternoon.  It  has  been  a  very  tiring  day,  and  as  Browning  was 
rather  bad  we  camped  at  4.30.     Distance  7  miles. 

October  26. — A  fine  morning.  We  started  away  after  break- 
fast with  both  sledges,  while  Priestley  went  into  the  bay  on  ski  to 
look  at  Tripp  Island  and  see  if  Professor  David  had  left  his 


Il6  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [October 

depot  of  rocks  there.  We  knew  he  had  depoted  the  specimens  on 
some  island  on  the  coast,  but  did  not  know  which. 

The  surface  had  improved,  so  the  rest  of  us  were  able  to 
get  the  sledges  along  at  a  fair  pace  and  it  was  noon  before  Priest- 
ley caught  us  up.  He  had  seen  nothing  of  the  depot,  but  col- 
lected some  rock  specimens  himself.  By  5  p.m.  we  were  off  an- 
other little  island  on  the  top  of  which  I  made  out  a  bamboo  with 
my  glasses.  We  pulled  in  and  camped  under  the  north  end.  We 
had  a  hard  struggle  over  the  pack,  but  within  a  few  hundred 
yards  of  land  we  found  a  smooth  lead  up  and  down  the  coast. 
After  this  we  made  a  point  of  keeping  close  to  the  coast  line 
on  our  journey,  and  it  certainly  paid  us,  in  spite  of  the  extra 
mileage.  After  hoosh  Priestley  and  I  climbed  to  the  top  of  the 
island  and  collected  Professor  David's  specimens,  also  some 
letters  his  party  had  left  in  a  tin,  addressed  to  Mrs.  David,  Dr. 
Mawson,  Lieutenant  Shackleton,  and  to  Commanding  Officer, 
S.Y.  Nimrod.  We  brought  all  these  down  and  packed  them  on 
the  sledge.  When  I  got  back  to  camp  Levick  came  to  me  about 
Browning's  condition.  He  was  getting  very  anxious  about  him, 
suspecting  organic  trouble.  I  suggested  his  and  Browning's  re- 
maining at  Granite  Harbour  with  all  the  gear,  while  the  rest  of 
us  pushed  on  with  a  light  sledge  to  get  provisions  from  Butter 
Point,  where  we  knew  there  would  be  a  small  depot,  but  Levick 
thought  it  best  to  bring  him  on,  as,  if  the  trouble  was  organic,  the 
sooner  he  could  be  laid  up  in  a  hut  the  better.  We  shall  there- 
fore push  on,  putting  him  on  the  sledge  when  he  gets  tired,  and 
to  keep  his  strength  up  give  him  one  extra  biscuit  per  day.  Seal 
meat  seems  to  be  poison  to  him.  Our  distance  this  day  was  about 
8  miles. 

October  27. — A  fine  morning.  Temperature  warmer.  We 
got  away  after  breakfast,  keeping  inside  Depot  Island  and  getting 
beautiful  smooth  ice  nearly  clear  of  snow,  which  lasted  to  Cape 
Ross,  where  we  had  to  cross  bad  pressure  ridges  off  the  cape. 
The  ridges  were  so  bad  we  had  to  cut  passages  for  the  sledges 
with  ice  axes.  We  had  smooth  ice  again  to  Cape  Gregory,  which 
is  now  an  island,  and  we  were  able  to  make  our  way  through  the 
strait  between  Gregory  Island  and  the  piedmont;  after  this  we 
again  struck  a  heavy  surface.  We  were  now  in  Granite  Harbour. 
After  pulling  2  miles  through  the  deep  snow  we  camped.  Dis- 
tance about  12  miles.    The  changes  in  the  face  of  the  piedmont 


i9i2]  A   WELCOME    FIND  117 

are  rather  interesting.  In  1902  Depot  Island  was  charted  a 
point  by  the  Discovery.  By  1909  it  had  turned  into  an  island  and 
was  named  accordingly  by  Professor  David.  David  reported 
Gregory  Point  a  cape  in  1909  and  it  is  now  (191 2)  an  island. 

We  saw  rock  outcropping  from  the  piedmont  at  various 
places,  and  no  doubt  these  exposures  will  be  points  or  islands  at 
some  near  period  in  the  future.  Priestley  collected  specimens 
everywhere  he  could.  We  saw  an  enormous  quantity  of  seals 
and  young  up,  so  this  is  evidently  a  great  breeding-place. 

October  28. — A  fine  morning;  we  made  fair  progress  over 
a  snow  surface.  We  had  to  make  a  detour  into  the  bay  to  avoid 
pressure.  A  cold  wind  sprang  up  in  the  afternoon,  and  my  nose, 
which  had  got  very  sunburnt  all  the  morning,  promptly  froze, 
and  when  thawed  out  was  very  painful.  We  camped  about 
6  P.M.  two  miles  north  of  Cape  Roberts.  No  seals  were  up  on 
the  south  side  of  the  bay.  Distance  10  miles.  No  sign  of  the 
ship  or  of  Debenham's  party. 

October  29. — Turned  out  at  4.30  A.M.  A  fine  day,  but  a 
bank  of  cloud  to  the  south  and  a  cold  westerly  wind.  A  two 
hours'  march  brought  us  to  Cape  Roberts,  where  I  saw  through 
my  glasses  a  bamboo  stuck  on  the  top  of  the  cape.  Leaving  the 
sledges,  Priestley  and  I  climbed  the  cape,  when  we  found  a 
record  left  by  the  Western  Party  last  year  before  they  were 
picked  up,  and  giving  their  movements,  while  near  by  was  a 
depot  of  provisions  they  had  left  behind.  We  gave  such  a  yell 
the  others  ran  up  the  slope  at  once.  It  seemed  almost  too.  good 
to  be  true. 

We  found  two  tins  of  biscuits,  one  slightly  broached,  and  a 
small  bag  each  of  raisins,  tea,  cocoa,  butter,  and  lard.  There 
were  also  clothes,  diaries,  and  specimens  from  Granite  Harbour. 
I  decided  to  camp  here  and  have  a  day  off.  Dividing  the  pro- 
visions between  the  two  tents,  we  soon  had  hoosh  going  and 
such  a  feed  of  biscuit,  butter,  and  lard  as  we  had  not  had  for 
9  months,  and  we  followed  this  up  with  sweet,  thick  cocoa.  After 
this  we  killed  and  cut  up  a  seal,  as  we  are  getting  short  of  meat 
and  there  is  every  prospect  of  a  blizzard  coming  on. 

Levick  and  Abbott  saw  a  desperate  fight  between  two  bull 
seals  to-day.  They  gashed  each  other  right  through  skin  and 
blubber  till  they  were  bleeding  badly. 

We  had  another  hoosh  and  more  biscuit  and  lard  in  the  even- 


118  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [November 

ing;  then  we  turned  into  our  bags  arid,  quite  torpid  with  food, 
discussed  our  plans  on  arriving  at  Cape  Evans.  We  had  quite 
decided  we  should  find  no  one  there,  for  we  believed  the  whole 
party  had  been  blown  north  in  the  ship,  while  trying  to  reach  us. 
Still  discussing  plans  we  fell  asleep.  What  with  news  from  the 
main  party  and  food  (although  both  were  a  year  old)  it  was  the 
happiest  day  since  we  last  saw  the  ship.  I  awoke  in  the  night, 
finished  my  share  of  the  butter  and  most  of  my  lard,  then  dozed 
off  again. 

October  30. — The  blizzard  never  came  off.  We  turned  out 
to  find  a  beautiful  warm  morning.  After  another  big  feed  of 
biscuits  and  a  brain  and  liver  hoosh  we  started  in  the  highest 
spirits.  The  change  of  diet  has  done  Browning  good  already.  I 
took  all  the  books,  food,  specimens,  and  records  of  Taylor's 
party,  leaving  only  the  old  clothes. 

I  also  left  a  note  saying  we  were  all  well.  The  surface  was 
fairly  good  with  occasional  belts  of  rough  pressure  ice  that  de- 
layed us  considerably.  Taylor's  journal  speaks  of  Glacier 
Tongue  having  broken  away  from  MacMurdo  Sound  and 
grounded  on  the  coast  south  of  Dunlop  Island.  It  will  be  inter- 
esting to  see  if  it  is  still  there.  At  midday  we  camped  for  lunch, 
and  the  hot  tea  and  biscuit  made  a  great  difference  to  our  march- 
ing. This  was  the  first  hot  lunch  we  had  had  and  we  all  appre- 
ciated it.  Between  5  and  6  the  pressure  was  very  bad;  not  high, 
but  jagged  and  continuous,  bruising  our  feet.  Luckily  we  had 
the  iron  runner  sledge.  Wooden  runners  would  have  been  torn 
to  shreds.  Camped  at  6.15.  Distance  8  miles.  Dunlop  Island 
in  sight  about  3  miles  ahead. 

October  31. — A  lovely  morning.  The  south-west  breeze  of 
the  night  had  dropped  and  the  day  felt  warm.  We  suffered  the 
same  painful  surface  until  within  a  mile  of  Dunlop  Island,  when 
we  reached  a  smooth  surface.  We  lunched  on  the  north  side  of 
Dunlop  Island.  After  lunch  we  searched  it  for  records,  but 
found  nothing.  Priestley  collected  some  specimens.  Resuming 
our  march  we  got  on  to  smooth  ice  between  Dunlop  Island  and 
the  mainland  and  kept  a  good  surface  until  we  camped  at  6.15, 
half-way  across  the  'Bay  of  Sails.'  Distance  11  miles:  Mt. 
Erebus  rising  to  the  height  of  several  thousand  feet. 

November  1. — 5  A.M.  A  fine  morning  with  heavy  clouds  to 
the  south.     We  had  a  good  surface  and  made  good  progress. 


z9i2]  NEWS   AT    BUTTER    POINT  119 

Priestley  collected  from  Cape  Gneiss  and  Marble  Point.  We 
lunched  at  the  latter  cape,  and  at  3.45  we  reached  Cape  Ber- 
nacchi,  where  we  collected  the  remainder  of  Taylor's  depot, 
three-quarters  of  a  tin  of  biscuits,  one  bag  of  pemmican,  and  ditto 
of  sugar,  raisins,  tea,  and  cocoa.  The  pemmican  and  raisins 
were  most  acceptable,  as  we  had  finished  ours.  Priestley  col- 
lected some  specimens  and  we  started  away  again  at  4.30,  across 
pressure  towards  Butter  Point.  At  6  P.M.  we  camped  about  1 
mile  south  of  Cape  Bernacchi  with  smooth  ice  ahead. 

We  are  certainly  having  the  most  lovely  weather,  clear,  calm, 
and  cold  enough  to  make  marching  a  pleasure.  A  large  number 
of  seals  and  young  up. 

November  2. — 5  A.M.  A  fine  morning.  Got  away  early 
over  good  snow  surface,  reaching  Butter  Point  at  2.30.  There 
was  a  good  deal  of  pressure  off  the  point,  so  leaving  the  sledges 
on  the  good  ice  we  walked  the  half  mile  to  the  depot.  We  had 
been  seeing  a  large  number  of  seals  and  young  since  Granite  Har- 
bour, but  just  off  Butter  Point  the  number  was  extraordinary. 

Getting  up  to  the  depot  we  found  an  enormous  quantity  of 
stores,  also  a  note  from  Atkinson  saying  he  had  tried  to  relieve 
us  last  April  but  had  found  no  ice  beyond  this  spot.  As  there 
was  no  further  message  we  were  anxious  for  the  safety  of  this 
party,  as  we  know  how  unreliable  the  autumn  ice  is.  As  to  what 
had  happened  it  was  hopeless  trying  to  speculate.  This  had 
upset  all  our  theories  and  I  had  a  vague  feeling  something  was 
wrong. 

I  therefore  decided  to  leave  one  tin  of  biscuits  here  and  get 
right  across  the  sound  as  soon  as  possible.  Taking  a  few  luxuries 
such  as  chocolate  and  jam,  we  went  back  to  the  sledges  and  pulled 
in  a  south-east  direction  until  about  7  P.M.,  when  we  camped. 
Distance  14  miles.  Weather  fine.  The  latter  part  of  our  march 
we  wTere  delayed  by  pressure  ridges  running  north  and  south. 

November  3. — 5.15  a.m.  Weather  overcast,  surface  good, 
with  belts  of  heavy  pressure,  the  ridges  running  north  and  south. 
Some  of  the  smooth  ice  had  struck  me  as  being  rather  new  ice. 
At  n.30  our  iron-runner  sledge  broke  down  hopelessly,  one  side 
coming  off.  We  had  a  hasty  lunch,  packed  the  sleeping-bags, 
records,  and  a  little  fresh  food  on  the  other  sledge,  depoted  all 
the  remainder,  and  then  started  on  again.  The  smooth  ice  leads 
between  the  pressure  were  suspiciously  dark  and  greasy  looking, 


120  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [November 

so  after  going  about  half  a  mile  we  sounded  with  an  ice  axe  and 
found  we  were  on  thin  soft  ice,  which  cannot  have  been  much 
more  than  a  day  or  two  old.  Turning  the  sledge  we  went  back 
at  a  run,  not  stopping  until  we  got  on  to  better  ice  by  the  old 
sledge.  Taking  the  rest  of  the  food  we  then  started  W.S.W. 
towards  the  Eskers.  Several  leads  were  so  new  we  had  to  cross 
them  at  a  run,  and  it  was  7.30  before  we  found  sound  ice,  with 
no  weak  leads  between  us  and  the  shore,  and  then  I  decided  to 
camp. 

November  4. — Weather  overcast  and  warm.  We  turned 
out  at  4.30,  and  after  breakfast  Priestley,  Abbott,  and  Dickason 
went  back  with  the  empty  sledge  to  get  the  remainder  of  the 
depot,  and  if  possible  fit  on  the  iron  runners,  while  Levick,  Brown- 
ing, and  I  went  back  with  packs  to  get  more  food.  We  had  a 
long  tramp  to  Butter  Point  and  back  over  rough  ice,  and  we 
had  done  18  miles  before  we  got  back  to  camp,  Levick  and  I 
with  a  50  lb.  pack  and  Browning  with  a  smaller  one,  as  he  had 
not  quite  recovered. 

The  change  in  Browning's  condition  owing  to  the  biscuit  is 
marvellous. 

A  week  ago  he  could  just  walk  by  the  sledge  on  a  march  of 
8  or  10  miles;  to-night,  although  tired,  he  is  none  the  worse  for 
his  18  mile  walk.  We  found  Priestley  and  his  party  had  already 
arrived  with  the  rest  of  the  depot  when  we  got  back,  and  to  my 
great  joy  he  had  been  able  to  fit  the  iron  runners  on  to  the 
12-ft.  sledge. 

November  5. — We  turned  out  at  3.30.  A  lovely  morning, 
with  bright  sun.  After  breakfast  we  started  away,  steering  for 
the  Dailey  Islands,  but  we  were  forced  to  make  a  detour  to  the 
west  to  avoid  rotten  ice  leads. 

The  mirage  was  extraordinary.  At  one  place  we  thought 
we  saw  three  men  pulling  a  sledge;  Priestley  and  I  walked 
towards  them;  they  apparently  stopped;  Priestley  started  sema- 
phoring while  I  looked  through  my  glasses.  No  result.  Suddenly 
they  turned  and  I  saw  they  were  Emperor  penguins,  miraged  up 
in  a  way  that  made  them  look  like  figures.  These  leads  of  bad 
ice  seemed  to  run  into  Blue  Glacier,  but  I  thought  I  could  see 
good  ice  beyond  them,  so  we  raced  the  sledge  straight  across, 
getting  over  without  a  mishap.  Once  over  we  found  old  ice 
behind  a  pressure  ridge,  and  after  crossing  that  struck  the  Barrier 


i9i2]  SAD    NEWS  121 

edge,  here  about  4  feet  high,  with  snow  drifts  leading  on  to  it.  A 
large  number  of  seals  and  Emperor  penguins  were  on  the  old 
ice.  Here  we  lunched.  The  Barrier  edge  runs  out  in  a  tongue, 
and  we  had  struck  it  on  the  north-west  corner.  We  were  thus 
able  to  steer  direct  for  Hut  Point  over  the  tongue.  At  5  p.m. 
we  came  up  to  the  pinnacled  ice  lying  on  the  east  side  of  the 
tongue. 

This  pinnacled  ice  is  very  rough  and  gritty  and  is  evidently 
the  remains  of  an  old  moraine  of  the  Koettlitz  Glacier.  By  skirt- 
ing to  the  north  of  this  we  found  a  lane  of  old  sea  ice  on  which 
we  could  travel  until  we  had  passed  it.  Enormous  crowds  of 
Emperors  were  here.  In  one  bunch  I  estimated  there  were  about 
300.  After  travelling  about  6  miles  on  this  old  ice  the  pinnacled 
ice  gave  out  and  we  were  able  to  head  for  Hut  Point  again  over 
the  Barrier.  I  had  hoped  to  get  into  Hut  Point  the  same  night, 
so  camped  for  hoosh  at  6.30.  Resuming  our  march  we  went 
on  till  1  A.M.,  when  I  found  we  were  still  7  miles  off.  I  therefore 
camped,  had  some  cocoa,  and  turned  in.  We  had  done  a  good 
march,  twenty-one  hours  since  we  turned  out,  and  had  we  been 
able  to  hold  a  straight  course  we  should  have  easily  got  in. 

November  6. — Another  fine  morning.  We  marched  till  1 
P.M.,  when  our  sledge  broke  down,  the  whole  runner  coming  off. 
As  we  were  only  1  mile  from  Hut  Point,  I  camped.  Priestley, 
Dickason,  and  I  walked  in  to  look  for  news  and  get  another 
sledge,  as  I  was  sure  some  would  be  there. 

As  we  neared  the  Point  we  noticed  fresh  tracks  of  mule  and 
dogs. 

I  pointed  them  out  to  Priestley,  and  said,  '  I  hope  there  is 
nothing  wrong  with  the  Pole  party,  as  I  do  not  like  the  look  of 
these.'  He  said,  '  No  more  do  I.'  We  ran  up  to  the  hut  and 
found  a  letter  from  Atkinson  to  the  '  Commanding- Officer,  Terra 
Nova.'  I  opened  this  and  learnt  the  sad  news  of  the  loss  of  the 
Polar  Party.  The  names  of  the  party  were  not  given,  and  find- 
ing Atkinson  in  charge  of  the  search  party  which  had  started,  I 
was  afraid  two  units,  or  eight  men,  were  lost.  Finding  a  sledge 
only  slightly  damaged  I  took  that  back  to  the  camp,  getting  back 
there  about  5  P.M. 

We  were  all  rather  tired,  so  instead  of  starting  straight  on 
to  Cape  Evans,  we  had  supper  and  went  to  sleep.N  Before  turn- 
ing in  we  made  a  depot  of  the  broken  sledge,  all  rock  specimens, 


122  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [November 

clothes,  and  food,  so  as  to  travel  light  to  Cape  Evans.  I  was 
very  anxious  to  get  there  as  soon  as  possible,  as  I  thought  there 
was  a  chance  that  there  might  be  one  or  two  mules  or  enough 
dogs  to  enable  me  to  follow  the  search  party.  It  had  been  a 
great  disappointment  for  us  to  have  missed  them  by  a  week,  as 
we  were  all  anxious  to  join  in  the  search. 

November  7. — 4  A.M.  A  lovely  morning.  After  a  hasty 
breakfast  we  were  off,  arriving  at  Cape  Evans  at  5  P.M.  We 
found  no  one  at  home,  but  a  letter  on  the  door  of  the  hut  gave 
us  all  the  news  and  the  names  of  the  lost  party.  Very  soon 
Debenham  and  Archer  returned,  giving  us  a  most  hearty  wel- 
come, and  no  one  can  realise  what  it  meant  to  us  to  see  new 
faces  and  to  be  home  after  our  long  winter.  Our  clothes,  let- 
ters, etc.,  had  been  landed  from  the  ship,  and  we  were  able  to 
read  our  home  letters,  which  we  had  only  time  to  glance  at  in 
the  ship  in  February.  Archer  provided  a  sumptuous  dinner  that 
night,  and  we  sailed  into  it  in  a  way  that  made  Debenham  hold 
his  breath.  A  bath  and  change  of  clothes  completed  the 
transformation. 

November  8. — Weather  overcast,  with  a  cold  south-easterly 
wind  of  medium  force.  I  went  round  with  Debenham  and  was 
much  surprised  at  the  amount  of  stores.  If  we  were  down  for 
another  winter  there  should  be  no  lack.  Our  clothes  had  been 
landed  by  the  ship.  There  was  nothing  we  wanted  except  boots, 
of  which  I  served  out  one  pair  to  each. 

It  was  hopeless  to  think  of  following  the  search  party,  the 
only  transport  being  a  few  dogs  that  had  been  left  behind,  as  they 
were  slow  or  weak.  Atkinson's  plans  were  to  push  on  and  search 
to  the  top  of  the  Beardmore  Glacier  unless  he  found  traces  of 
the  party  before,  so  there  was  no  hope  of  catching  him.  I  find  our 
party  are  not  so  fit  as  I  thought.  Most  of  us  have  developed 
swollen  ankles  and  legs  (oedema),  and  when  the  flesh  is  pressed 
in  the  holes  remain  there. 

From  November  8  till  the  return  of  the  sledge  party  we  were 
all  very  busy  transcribing  our  last  winter's  diaries,  developing 
photographs,  and  renewing  what  of  our  outfit  we  were  unable 
to  replace. 

On  the  nth  Levick,  Abbott  and  Dickason  left  for  Hut  Point, 
and  the  next  day  but  one  they  returned,  bringing  with  them  our 


i 


1912J 


AT    CAPE    EVANS  123 


records  and  specimens.  They  had  taken  all  the  provisions  left  on 
our  broken  sledge  to  Hut  Point. 

November  25. — A  mild  blizzard.  Priestley  and  Debenham 
had  arranged  to  start  for  Cape  Royds  to-day,  taking  Dickason, 
but  decided  to  wait  for  better  weather. 

At  8  p.m.  two  dog  teams  with  Atkinson,  Cherry-Garrard, 
and  Demetri  arrived.  They  had  found  the  remains  of  the  Polar 
Party  1 1  miles  south  of  '  1  Ton  Depot.'  Atkinson  brought  back 
all  their  records  and  personal  gear,  which  I  asked  him  to  take 
charge  of  personally. 

November  26. — I  went  with  Atkinson  to  Hut  Point  with  a 
dog  team. 

It  was  a  fine,  clear  day,  and  leaving  Cape  Evans  at  noon  we 
got  there  about  2  p.m.  The  surface  was  good  and  I  walked  up 
to  the  Gap  and  saw  the  rest  of  the  party  in  camp  at  *  Safety 
Camp.' 

November  27. — The  remainder  of  the  party  pulled  in 
about  2  A.M.,  and  it  was  very  pleasant  meeting  them  all  again. 
Atkinson  and  I  left  them  there  and  returned  to  Cape  Evans,  get- 
ting in  at  5  A.M.  next  morning. 

November  28. — A  line  day.  The  party  with  the  mules  ar- 
rived at  1  p.m.  Although  five  mules  out  of  seven  were  brought 
back  we  had  to  shoot  two  of  them,  as  they  refused  all  food  and 
were  in  a  very  bad  condition. 

We  now  settled  down  to  routine  work  and  short  sledge  jour- 
neys on  Ross  Island,  and  for  geological  survey  work,  Priestley 
and  Debenham  taking  a  party  up  Mt.  Erebus. 

The  ship  arrived  January  18,  just  as  we  were  starting  to 
prepare  for  a  third  winter. 


THE    WESTERN    JOURNEYS* 
By  T.  Griffith  Taylor,  B.A.,  B.Sc,  B.E.,  F.G.S. 

CHAPTER    I 

KOETTLITZ,    FERRAR,   AND   TAYLOR   GLACIERS 

The  following  chapters  describe  the  doings  of  six  members  of 
the  Expedition  during  a  detailed  exploration  of  the  '  Western 
Mountains  '  in  South  Victoria  Land.  A  few  words  as  to  the 
scene  of  our  operations  and  the  personnel  of  the  parties  will 
serve  as  an  introduction  to  the  narrative  of  the  sledge  journeys. 

As  you  stand  on  Cape  Evans  with  your  back  to  the  steam 
cloud  of  Erebus  you  see  across  MacMurdo  Sound  a  glorious 
range  of  mountains  running  due  north  and  south  and  rising  to 
13,000  feet  in  the  south-west.  These  are  the  Western  Moun- 
tains. Their  southern  limit  is  the  extinct  volcanic  cone  of 
Discovery,  and  far  to  the  north  one  can  follow  the  same  range 
of  snow-clad  peaks  until  it  merges  with  the  grey  line  of  the 
horizon.  Beyond  this  grey  line  was  Granite  Harbour  (760  50'), 
and  that  marked  the  northern  limit  of  our  survey;  while  the 
Koettlitz  Glacier  (in  78 °  20'),  which  hid  the  lower  slopes  of 
Discovery,  was  the  '  farthest  south  '  reached  in  our  two  sledging 
trips. 

On  clear  days  we  could  see  every  little  cup-shaped  valley 
which  roughened  the  mighty  scarp  of  Lister,  so  sharply  that  it 
seemed  impossible  that  they  were  seventy  miles  away.  Due  west 
was  the  valley  of  the  Lower  Ferrar  Glacier,  while  the  long  gleam- 
ing snow  slope  at  its  mouth  was  the  Butter  Point  Piedmont — the 
starting  place  for  all  Western  exploration,  where  depots  have 
been  made  even  since  the  butter  was  left  there  by  the  1902 
expedition. 

Hidden  behind  the  ranges  was  the  Great  Ice  Plateau.  From 
this  height  of  7000  feet  descended  the  great  rivers  of  ice — the 

*  See  Folding  Map,  p.  290:  and  The  Birdseye  Views,  pp.  420,  422,  425. 


o 

O  8 
M  g 

w  o 

w  ** 

O    o 


CM  m 

<   a 

*  § 


COMRADES  AND  COMRADESHIP  125 

Koettlitz,  Ferrar,  Taylor,  and  Mackay  Glaciers — with  which 
the  following  pages  are  concerned. 

Now  as  to  my  mates.  What  is  the  '  Call  to  the  Wild  '  which 
seems  to  draw  men  back  to  the  Antarctic?  In  my  opinion  it  is 
the  association  with  picked  companions,  especially  chosen  for 
their  suitability  for  the  environment,  which  constitutes  the  charm 
of  life  in  the  Antarctic.  The  deserts  of  Australia  or  the  wilds 
of  Spitzbergen  would  appeal  equally  to  me  with  the  same 
companions. 

There  is  a  famous  old  school  near  Sydney  where  for  many 
years  there  were  representatives  from  two  families,  the  Deben- 
hams  and  Taylors.  So  that  Frank  Debenham  and  myself  were 
old  friends  and  graduates  in  geology  of  the  same  'Varsity.  In 
later  years  at  Cambridge  there  was  an  informal  club  of  re- 
search students  in  which  Wright  of  Caius  and  Taylor  of  Em- 
manuel were  fellow-members.  Debenham's  experience  as  Com- 
missary-General at  many  a  camp  in  Australia  made  him  invalu- 
able sledging — while  Wright  was  an  expert  in  traversing  snow- 
clad  country,  for  he  often  spent  his  vacations  from  Toronto 
University  surveying  in  the  Canadian  backwoods. 

Next  may  I  introduce  Tryggve  Gran,  the  youngest  and  yet 
the  most  travelled  officer  in  the  Expedition  except  our  leader 
himself.  Interested  in  sport,  travel,  music,  literature  and  lan- 
guages, '  Trigger  '  never  let  a  day  pass  without  enlivening  our 
march  by  some  of  his  many  adventures. 

Of  the  two  petty  officers,  Edgar  Evans  coached  the  first 
party,  all  of  whom  were  new  chums,  in  Antarctic  sledging.  He 
was  one  of  the  Discovery  men  and  was  an  ideal  sledge  mate; 
while  Forde,  another  giant  of  the  navy,  was  sledge  master  on 
our  Granite  Harbour  journey. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  the  six  men  represented  six 
nationalities.  Debenham  and  Wright  come  from  Australia  and 
Canada;  Gran  is  a  hardy  Norseman;  Forde  is  Irish;  Evans 
came  from  Cardiff;  while  I  was  the  only  member  born  in  Eng- 
land. If  I  have  dwelt  on  this  question  of  personnel,  it  is  because 
it  is  so  important  a  factor  in  exploration,  and  these  few  words 
help  to  explain  the  unbroken  harmony  which  existed  during  our 
six  months'  sledging. 

On  January  26,  191 1,  Captain  Scott  handed  to  me  the  Sledg- 
ing Orders  governing  our  movements  on  the  first  Western  Jour- 


126  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [January 

ncy.  They  give  a  comprehensive  account  of  what  we  actually 
carried  out,  and  I  therefore  insert  them  here,  omitting  only  a 
paragraph  concerning  Hut  Point. 

4  Dear  Taylor, 

'  I  purpose  to  disembark  a  sledge-party  of  which  you 
will  have  charge,  on  the  sea  ice  of  MacMurdo  Sound  as  near 
the  Ferrar  Glacier  as  possible. 

4  Your  companions  will  be  Messrs.  Debenham,  Wright,  and 
Petty  Officer  Evans. 

*  You  will  have  two  sledges  with  food,  and  equipment  for 
eight  weeks. 

4  The  object  of  your  journey  will  be  the  geological  explora- 
tion of  the  region  between  the  Dry  Valley  and  the  Koettlitz 
Glacier. 

4  Your  movements  must  depend  to  some  extent  on  the  break- 
ing of  the  sea  ice.  Your  best  and  safest  plan  appears  to  be  to 
carry  all  your  provision  up  the  Ferrar  Glacier  to  a  point  in  the 
medial  moraine  abreast  of  Descent  Pass,  and  to  make  a  depot 
at  that  point.  With  a  fortnight's  food  you  could  then  continue 
the  ascent  to  the  junction  of  the  Dry  Valley  glacier  and  descend 
the  Valley  of  that  glacier.  On  returning  to  your  depot  you  will 
be  in  a  position  to  observe  the  extent  of  open  water,  and  you 
can  either  descend  the  glacier  and  pass  to  the  east  around  Butter 
Point,  or  climb  Descent  Pass,  descending  by  the  Blue  Glacier 
or  by  one  of  the  more  southerly  foothill  glaciers,  and  thus  con- 
tinue the  examination  of  the  Koettlitz  Glacier  area. 

4  On  completion  of  your  work  you  should  cross  to  Hut  Point, 
being  careful  not  to  camp  too  near  open  water.  .  .  . 
4  Wishing  you  the  best  of  luck, 

4  Yours  sincerely, 

(sgd.)  R.  Scott.' 

With  regard  to  our  equipment  only  one  feature  deserves  com- 
ment. We  carried  an  exceptionally  large  photographic  battery, 
which  was  necessitated  by  the  character  of  the  problems  which 
engaged  our  attention.  For  instance,  Wright  was  chiefly  in- 
terested in  the  forms  of  ice-structure  which  we  encountered.  The 
most  delicate  ice-crystals,  which  withered  at  a  breath,  must  needs 
be  photographed  in  situ.  There  was  no  possibility  of  his  bring- 
ing back  specimens  for  study  in  the  hut  during  the  dark  winter 


[See  p.  210 

THE  FIRST  WESTERN  PARTY  IN  A  NATURAL  ICE-TUNNEL  AMID  THE 
PINNACLES    OF   THE    KOETTLITZ   GLACIER 

(Edgar  Evans  standing) 


{See  p.  257 


THE   SECOND   WESTERN   PARTY  AT   CAPE  GEOLOGY,   GRANITE  HARBOUR, 

ON   CHRISTMAS    DAY,    igil 

(Forde  and  Gran  standing,  Debenham  and  Taylor  sitting) 


i9ii]  EQUIPMENT  127 

months.  For  similar  reasons  a  somewhat  bulky  polariscope — in 
which  sheets  of  ice  were  examined  in  polarised  light — formed 
part  of  his  load,  and  was  vulgarly  referred  to  as  '  the  Barrel 
Organ.'    He  also  had  charge  of  the  theodolite. 

Debenham  was  engaged  on  the  more  usual  work  of  collecting 
rock  specimens  and  mapping  their  occurrence  in  the  field.  For 
this  purpose  another  camera  was  essential,  since  in  general  his 
investigations  were  carried  out  on  the  cliffs  at  some  distance  from 
the  rest  of  us. 

The  subject  which  primarily  interested  myself  was  the  physi- 
ographic aspect  of  the  region,  or,  as  it  may  popularly  be  de- 
scribed, '  The  last  chapter  in  the  geological  history  of  Antarc- 
tica.' In  other  words,  How  has  the  land  surface  been  affected  by 
the  flow  of  glaciers,  by  the  action  of  wind,  frost,  water,  and  ice? 
And  a  second  and  more  interesting  question  I  set  myself  was, 
How  do  the  resulting  features  differ  from  those  observed  in  more 
temperate  regions,  where  water  plays  such  an  important  part  and 
ice  erosion  is  absent? 

On  January  27  Pennell  took  us  across  the  Sound  in  the 
Terra  Nova  from  Glacier  Tongue  to  Butter  Point,  where  we 
arrived  about  4  P.M.  We  spent  some  time  packing  our  gear  on 
our  two  sledges.    The  total  load  was  arrived  at  as  follows : 

lbs. 

Two  sledges  and  steel  runners 171 

Food  for  eight  weeks 630 

Tools,  tents,  &c 130 

Instruments,  cameras,  &c 6$ 

Four  personal  bags 50 

1046 

We  had  heavy  equipment  for  four  men — averaging  about 
270  lbs.  each — but  as  we  were  only  proposing  to  take  one 
sledge  for  a  considerable  portion  of  the  journey  this  was  of  little 
importance. 

From  the  coast  we  had  a  magnificent  view  of  the  lower  por- 
tion of  the  Ferrar  Glacier.1  The  valley  was  about  four  miles  wide 
and  extended  south-west  for  thirty  miles.  Up  this  we  were  to 
journey,  ascending  3000  feet  in  the  next  few  days. 

Everyone  noticed  the  grand  sweep  of  the  cliffs  at  the  side. 

1  See  Illustration,  p.  420. 


128  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  January 

The  northern  face  for  twenty  miles  is  a  marvellous  wall-like 
cliff  about  3000  feet  high — as  straight  and  smooth  as  if  planed 
by  a  giant  carpenter.  And  indeed  it  is  a  typical  glacial  valley, 
where  the  lateral  spurs,  such  as  break  up  the  continuity  of  an 
ordinary  river-cut  valley,  are  entirely  wanting. 

We  started  about  6  p.m.  and  pulled  the  sledges  about  four 
miles  before  camping  for  the  night. 

I  asked  Evans  to  cook  for  the  first  week,  as  he  was  experi- 
enced with  the  cooker  and  primus  lamp.  Debenham's  reputation 
was  such  that  I  was  sure  he  would  master  polar  cooking  sooner 
than  any  of  us.  So  he  became  cook's-mate  and  assistant — to 
rise  to  chef  next  week.  Wright  agreed  to  take  the  third  week, 
and  I  thought  by  that  time  I  might  have  learnt  enough  to  im- 
prove on  my  own  very  modest  culinary  attainments. 

We  started  on  a  Friday,  and  our  calendar  was  reckoned  from 
cook's  day  to  cook's  day.  There  was  never  any  doubt  as  to 
which  day  of  the  week  it  was,  because  each  cook  was  so  keen 
to  relinquish  his  post  at  the  close  of  his  term  of  office ! 

While  Evans  was  initiating  Debenham  in  the  mysteries  of 
pemmican,  Wright  and  I  walked  across  the  sea  ice  a  mile  or  so 
to  the  south  and  reached  a  '  lateral  tongue  '  or  prolongation  of 
the  main  glacier.  There  was  a  sudden  rise  of  some  three  feet, 
and  the  surface  in  place  of  being  level  and  comparatively  smooth 
was  carved  out  into  deep  irregular  bowls  with  overhanging  mar- 
gins. These  were  in  all  probability  giant  '  sunholes,'  and  their 
floors  were  covered  with  a  most  beautiful  carpet  of  snow  crystals. 

Examined  closely  each  crystal  was  like  the  segment  of  a  fan 
strengthened  by  cross-ribs,  and  these  '  fan-plates  '  were  often 
half  an  inch  across.  The  surface  as  a  whole  reminded  me 
strongly  of  the  appearance  of  a  coral  reef — and  it  was  about  as 
pleasant  a  sight  to  us  as  the  latter  is  to  the  navigator.  Wright 
was  the  only  one  who  appreciated  their  beauty,  we  others  being 
more  concerned  with  the  numerous  capsizes  caused  by  this 
'  coral  reef '  structure,  which  characterised  the  whole  of  the 
lower  Ferrar  Glacier. 

We  returned  to  the  tent,  and  as  usual  at  starting  found  it 
impossible  to  eat  all  our  pemmican.  It  seemed  much  too  rich 
and  abundant; — alas,  how  fleeting  was  this  opinion! 

Next  day,  January  28,  we  sledged  several  miles  up  the 
glacier,  but  spent  all  the  afternoon  examining  a  beautiful  hang- 


I9H! 


GLASS-ROOF    ICE  129 


ing  glacier  which  lay  like  a  great  white  mantle  flung  on  the 
northern  wall  of  the  Ferrar  Valley.  To  reach  this  side  glacier 
we  had  to  cross  a  much  weathered  portion  of  the  Ferrar's  sur- 
face. Large  dome-covered  ponds  into  which  we  fell  at  frequent 
intervals  made  one  of  us  remark,  *  Just  like  a  promenade  on  the 
roof  of  the  Crystal  Palace.' 

As  usual  the  rock  slopes  were  fringed  by  a  colonnade  of 
gigantic  pinnacles  thirty  feet  high  separated  by  narrow  crevasses. 
The  sun  glistening  on  the  icy  minarets  and  beautiful  icicles  made 
a  most  impressive  sight.  Beyond  this  we  soon  reached  the  talus 
or  debris  slopes  below  the  '  Double  Curtain  '  glacier.  A  stiff 
climb  up  this  brought  us  to  the  snout  of  the  tributary,  and  we 
found  that  this  '  mantle  of  ice  '  ended  in  a  vertical  face  forty  feet 
thick.  While  Wright  and  Debenharh  investigated  this  region, 
I  climbed  up  2500  feet  and  stood  on  the  shoulder  of  the  Kukri 
Hills. 

A  wonderful  panorama  was  spread  out  before  me  which 
was  especially  striking  to  the  south-west.  Here  jutted  out  the 
three  grand  gables — like  the  roof  of  a  Gothic  cathedral — which 
were  so  appropriately  named  the  Cathedral  Rocks.  Below  this 
we  were  to  leave  our  first  depot. 

As  we  returned  to  the  tent  some  two  miles  off  we  came  across 
several  parties  of  Emperor  penguins  stolidly  awaiting  the  end 
of  their  moulting  season.  They  probably  totalled  one  hundred. 
Only  one  individual  was  garbed  in  new  and  shining  raiment,  and 
him  I  slew  in  preparation  for  a  change  of  diet  if  our  appetite 
failed  on  a  pemmican  regime. 

All  next  day  we  pulled  steadily  up  the  glacier  to  the  west, 
encouraged  by  Evans's  opinion  that  we  should  meet  better  sledg- 
ing surfaces  higher  up  the  glacier. 

On  the  30th  we  had  very  heavy  going  up  the  broad  ice  undu- 
lations and  about  noon  got  among  the  crevasses.  We  all  slipped 
in  at  various  intervals,  but  they  were  quite  narrow  and  gave 
us  no  trouble.  The  snow  was  a  foot  thick  in  many  places  and 
alternated  with  '  glass-roof  '  ice  into  which  we  fell  frequently. 
However  we  kept  on  till  9  p.m.,  when  we  reached  the  big 
moraine  below  Cathedral  Rocks,  and  there  made  our  depot  as 
Captain  Scott  had  advised. 

Above  our  depot  the  slope  was  steeper,  but  we  had  only  half 
the  load  to  pull,  and  towards  6  p.m.  on  the  next  evening  we 

VOL.  II — 9 


1 30  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [January 

reached  the  top  of  the  lower  Ferrar  and  found  ourselves  on  a 
small  ice  plateau  about  3200  feet  above  sea  level.  We  now 
marched  along  the  grandest  geological  section  it  has  ever  been 
my  good  fortune  to  see.  The  cliff  to  the  north,  3300  feet  high, 
was  capped  by  yellowish  sandstone.  Beneath  this  were  two 
wonderful  horizontal  sheets  of  dark  lava  which  had  intruded 
through  the  granite  base  so  that  the  rocks  looked  like  a  gigantic 
sandwich  composed  of  alternating  yellow,  black  and  red  layers. 
The  lower  slopes  of  the  red  granite  were  covered  by  the  old 
lateral  moraine,  a  layer  of  dark  debris  left  by  the  Ferrar  Glacier 
when  it  almost  filled  the  valley  we  were  following. 

We  pushed  on  till  9  p.m.,  descending  slightly  as  we  proceeded 
to  the  north,  and  camped  on  the  glacier  filling  the  upper  end  of 
the  Dry  Valley.  The  exploration  of  this  glacier — which  Scott 
had  rapidly  traversed  in  1903 — was  the  work  before  us  during 
the  next  fortnight.  Captain  Scott  has  honoured  me  by  giving  it 
the  name  of  Taylor  Glacier. 

I  kept  too  near  to  the  Kukri  Hills  on  descending  into  the 
Taylor  Glacier  and  we  struck  an  extremely  steep  slippery  surface 
consisting  of  clear  ice  cut  into  rounded  hollows  a  foot  across. 
This  characteristic  surface — like  giant  thumb  marks  in  a  piece 
of  putty — was  full  of  small  crevasses,  and  here  the  sledge  re- 
peatedly '  took  charge.'  We  rolled  about  all  over  the  place,  and 
someone  remarked  that  we  had  all  the  appearance  of  being  drunk 
and  none  of  the  pleasure  of  it! 

To  our  surprise,  after  five  days'  pulling  over  heavy  snow  in 
the  Ferrar  Glacier,  we  found  no  snow  in  the  parallel  Taylor 
Valley,  only  about  10  miles  farther  north.  After  lunching  among 
the  scattered  blocks  of  the  medial  moraine  we  descended  about  a 
thousand  feet,  the  sledge  doing  its  own  pulling.  Debenham  and 
I  went  on  ahead  with  slack  traces,  while  Evans  and  Wright  en- 
livened the  valley  with  what  they  were  pleased  to  call  '  cheerful 
song  ' !  A  strong  keen  wind  was  blowing  up  the  valley,  but  the 
most  remarkable  feature  of  this  region  prevented  it  from  becom- 
ing obnoxious.    There  was  no  drift-snow ! 

Imagine  a  valley  four  miles  wide,  3000  feet  deep,  and  25 
miles  long  without  a  patch  of  snow — and  this  in  the  Antarctic  in 
latitude  77^4°  S.  By  this  time  we  could  see  the  '  snout '  of  the 
glacier  just  below  us.  The  slope  became  too  steep  for  the  sledge 
and  at  six  o'clock  we  halted  to  try  and  find  a  site  for  our  camp. 


i9ii]  DRY    VALLEY  131 

Beyond  the  snout  was  a  wide,  bare  stony  trough,  extending 
many  miles  to  the  east.  The  lower  slopes  were  strewn  with  red- 
dish granite  boulders.  Here  and  there  on  the  upper  slopes  piles 
of  intensely  black  fragments — for  all  the  world  like  coal  dumps 
— marked  recent  lava  flows. 

Between  the  serrated  crests  of  the  giant  cliffs  towering  five 
or  six  thousand  feet  above  us  were  cascading  rivers  of  ice.  These 
hanging  glaciers  spread  out  in  great  white  lobes  over  the  lower 
slopes  of  dark  rock,  and  in  some  cases  the  cliffs  were  so  steep 
that  the  lower  portion  of  the  tributary  glacier  was  fed  purely  by 
avalanches  falling  from  the  ice  fields  up  above.  And,  most  amaz- 
ing of  all,  not  a  snowdrift  in  sight.  It  was  warm  weather  most 
of  the  time  we  spent  in  Dry  Valley — rising  sometimes  above 
freezing-point — and  everywhere  streams  were  tinkling  among 
the  black  boulders,  so  much  so  that  this  valley,  in  spite  of  its 
name,  was  certainly  the  wettest  area  I  saw  in  Antarctica ! 

About  a  mile  back  from  the  end  of  the  glacier  we  made  a 
permanent  camp.  We  could  drag  the  sledge  no  further,  and  I 
recognised  that '  packing  '  on  our  backs  was  the  only  way  to  map 
this  snowless  region. 

Bare  ice  surrounded  us,  forty-foot  ice  cliffs  and  a  wide  *  gla- 
cier moat '  separated  us  from  the  steep  rock  slopes.  Nowhere 
could  we  find  a  place  to  stand  easily — while  it  was  impossible  to 
pitch  the  tent.  However  the  centre  of  the  glacier  was  cut  up 
by  surface  streams  into  deep  gullies  whose  sunny  southern  sides 
were  cut  into  a  series  of  picturesque  alcoves.  They  were  most 
beautiful  specimens  of  nature's  architecture,  the  steep  walls  of 
clear  ice  being  fretted  by  the  sun  into  a  thousand  pilasters  and 
niches.  We  lowered  the  sledge  down  20  feet  into  one  of  these 
Gothic  apses,  and  found  ideal  conditions  for  a  sheltered  camp. 
We  had  a  strongly  running  stream — an  inch  deep — alongside; 
and  though  the  wind  howled  along  the  surface  of  the  glacier 
nothing  was  even  disturbed  in  Alcove  Camp. 

We  spent  two  days  mapping  the  vicinity,  and  then  started 
our  trek  to  the  sea.  We  packed  up  the  tent,  our  sleeping-bags, 
and  five  days'  food.  Our  method  of  march  was  rather  amusing. 
Wright  carried  his  pack  in  the  Canadian  method  by  a  '  tump- 
line  '  round  his  forehead.  He  took  the  theodolite.  P.O.  Evans 
wrapped  his  goods  and  the  tent  round  the  tent  poles  and  proudly 
carried  them  like  a  standard  over  his  shoulder.     Debenham 


1 32  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

copied  the  Australian  swagsman  with  a  bundle  in  front  nearly 
balancing  the  main  bulk  behind.  I  found,  as  usual,  that  a  strap 
over  the  right  shoulder  (as  used  by  the  Italian  harpist)  suited 
my  convenience  best.  Very  reluctantly  we  left  our  trusty  cooker 
behind,  but  Debenham  carried  his  camera  and  half  the  food,  while 
I  bore  the  remainder  and  a  veritable  goldminer's  dish,  to  try  for 
gold  in  the  gravels  of  Dry  Valley. 

We  marched  down  a  narrow  gap,  cut  through  a  great  bar 
of  granite,  and  saw  ahead  of  us  quite  a  large  lake,  some  three 
miles  long.  It  was  of  course  frozen,  but  through  the  thick  ice 
covering  we  could  see  water  plants,  and  below  the  steep  cliffs 
the  water  seemed  very  deep.  We  lunched  at  the  east  end  of  the 
lake — the  first  of  many  cold  meals,  and  like  all  of  them  consisting 
chiefly  of  biscuit  and  butter,  varied  by  biscuit  without  butter. 
However  we  had  a  cake  of  chocolate  each  afternoon  and  a  little 
cheese. 

Hereabouts  the  wide  valley  was  filled  with  morainic  debris, 
and  we  passed  close  to  several  of  the  cliff  glaciers.  I  was  much 
surprised  to  find  that  the  bed  of  the  valley  now  commenced  to 
rise,  for  we  knew  we  were  approaching  the  sea.  We  continued 
to  ascend  and  could  see  no  way  out  of  the  trough.  Immediately 
ahead  was  a  great  rock  barrier  across  the  valley  and  evidently 
several  thousand  feet  high.  However  in  the  next  few  miles  I 
counted  no  less  than  thirteen  dead  seals  which  had  somehow 
come  up  from  the  coast,  and  I  felt  sure  we  could  easily  manage 
anything  they  could  traverse.     [See  Illustration,  page  420.] 

Soon  we  began  to  open  up  a  narrow  defile  down  the  north 
side  of  the  valley,  but  this  outlet — a  sort  of  notch  one  thousand 
feet  deep  scored  in  the  bottom  of  the  trough — was  apparently 
barred  by  a  tributary  cliff  glacier. 

It  was  now  nearly  six  o'clock  and  my  shoulder  was  aching 
with  my  pack.  Judging  from  the  readiness  of  the  others  to  drop 
their  loads,  I  concluded  that  they  felt  the  same.  But  we  all 
had  an  idea  that  a  few  minutes  later  would  give  us  a  view  of  the 
sea. 

We  wondered  if  we  could  pass  around  the  snout  of  this  won- 
derful tributary  immediately  in  front.  It  opposed  a  face  of  ice 
40  feet  high,  but  just  where  it  butted  into  the  steep  (south)  slope 
of  the  defile  there  was  a  gap.  So  narrow  was  this  that  one  could 
almost  touch  the  ice  face  on  one  side  and  the  side  of  the  defile  on 


ALCOVE  CAMP  IN  A  SURFACE  GULLY  OF  THE  TAYLOR  GLACIER 


PACKING   FROM  ALCOVE  CAMP  TO  THE  SEA 

(The  Taylor  Glacier  is  in  the  background  ;  Wright,  Edgar  Evans  and  Debenham  are  crossing 

Lake  Bonney) 


i9ii]  LAKE    CHAD  133 

the  other.  Through  this  we  carried  our  packs;  through  this  in 
the  other  direction  the  seals  must  have  laboriously  crawled  to 
die  far  inland. 

We  could  not  see  the  sea,  but  found  the  defile  occupied  by  a 
frozen  lake  a  mile  long.  There  were  dry  gravelly  banks  around 
this  lake  and  here  we  pitched  the  tent.  We  had  brought  no 
floor-cloth,  but  after  the  wet  and  icy  floor  of  the  'Alcove'  camp — 
where  Wright  had  slept  in  a  pool  of  water  three  inches  deep — we 
found  the  warm  gravel  most  comfortable.  We  had  our  frugal 
meal,  washed  down  by  cold  water  from  the  lake  adjacent.  The 
latter  was  distinctly  medicinal  and  had  no  outlet,  so  ignoring 
climatic  differences  we  unanimously  christened  it  Lake  Chad. 

I  was  quite  worried  to  know  what  had  become  of  the  broad 
stony  valley  which  Shackleton's  men  had  seen  from  the  coast  in 
1908,  and  wondered  if  we  were  side-tracked  in  some  tributary 
valley.  So  after  dinner  P.O.  Evans — who  was  always  eager  for 
extra  work — accompanied  me  to  the  top  of  the  ridge  immediately 
south  of  the  tent.  It  was  a  stiff  ascent  of  1600  feet  to  a  flat  bare 
expanse  obviously  planed  by  bygone  glaciers.  To  my  surprise 
I  saw  that  a  much  larger  rounded  valley  lay  immediately  north 
of  this  ridge,  but  this  '  Round '  Valley,  unlike  the  defile,  did  not 
connect  with  the  Taylor  Glacier.  To  the  east  some  ten  miles 
beyond  a  broad  debris-strewn  plain  lay  the  sea,  and  in  the  far 
distance  we  could  see  the  glaciers  on  the  slopes  of  Erebus  and 
the  pyramid  of  Beaufort  Island. 

Early  on  the  5th  Evans  and  I  started  for  the  coast,  while 
Debenham  and  Wright  investigated  the  rocks  and  glaciers  near 
the  defile.  We  proceeded  S.E.,  passing  several  tributary  gla- 
ciers, and  had  to  cross  many  streams  running  across  the  plain 
from  the  southern  wall.  We  reached  a  suitable  station  on  the 
eastern  slopes  of  the  Kukri  Hills  and  I  took  a  round  of  angles 
with  the  theodolite  which  linked  Dry  Valley  to  Ross  Island.  We 
got  back  at  nine  o'clock  and  found  that  Debenham  had  collected 
many  interesting  minerals  from  the  marble  outcrops  of  the 
defile. 

Next  morning  Wright  and  I  ascended  the  Riegel  which  so 
nearly  barred  the  valley.  We  climbed  2400  feet  and  then  walked 
to  the  top  of  the  scarp  facing  up  the  valley  to  the  west.  So  tem- 
pestuous was  the  wind  that  we  could  not  stand  against  it,  much 
less  use  the  theodolite.    At  last  there  came  a  lull,  and  almost  be- 


I34  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

fore  we  had  the  theodolite  ready  the  gale  had  veered  to  the 
east — diametrically  opposite — and  continued  to  blow  almost  as 
fiercely  from  that  quarter.  Our  apparent  fine  weather  in  the 
west  was,  I  think,  largely  due  to  the  fact  that  there  was  so  little 
snowfall  there.  In  fact  this  region  would  have  been  an  arid 
desert  even  in  more  favoured  climes. 

After  supper  I  took  the  prospecting  dish  and  washed  for 
gold  in  the  gravels  alongside  the  lake.  There  were  numerous 
quartz  '  leads  '  in  the  slates  with  which  metamorphic  and  erup- 
tive rocks  were  associated,  while  water  was  abundant  in  Lake 
Chad.  In  spite  of  these  favouring  conditions  neither  Debenham 
nor  myself  could  get  a  '  colour.'  Only  a  '  tail '  of  magnetite  in 
the  dish  rewarded  our  perseverance.  So  we  depoted  the  dish  on 
a  boulder  in  the  defile,  for  we  knew  that  there  would  be  no  water 
available  for  gold-seeking  in  the  remainder  of  our  journey. 

On  the  7th  we  trekked  back  to  Alcove  Camp.  We  lunched 
below  the  '  Matterhorn,'  one  of  the  most  striking  peaks  in  the 
Western  Mountains.  It  appears  to  be  composed  of  a  cluster 
of  dolerite  pinnacles  surmounting  a  pyramid  of  granite.  We 
took  careful  angles  to  ascertain  its  height,  which  we  estimated 
at  9000  feet.  Great  was  my  astonishment  when  we  plotted  our 
results  in  the  hut  to  find  that  our  peak  was  a  bare  5000  feet. 
In  the  absence  of  trees  or  houses  or  any  standards  for  com- 
parison it  was  absolutely  impossible  to  estimate  any  height  or 
distance  in  these  icy  regions,  and  we  soon  learnt  to  profoundly 
mistrust  our  own  guesses  and  to  openly  disbelieve  any  one  else's ! 

The  warmth  of  the  last  few  days  had  ruined  the  Alcove  as 
a  camp  site.  We  had  much  difficulty  in  finding  another.  But 
about  100  yards  north  in  the  next  deep  gulley  was  a  patch  of 
moraine  exactly  like  a  heap  of  road-metal.  We  levelled  this  as 
well  as  we  could,  and  slept  none  the  worse  for  what  P.O.  Evans 
called  '  a  few  feathers  in  the  bed.'  I  draw  a  veil  over  our  per- 
formance at  supper,  the  first  hot  meal  for  nearly  a  week! 

Before  we  left  this  region  Debenham  climbed  2500  feet  up 
the  south  slope  and  mapped  a  great  wall  of  basic  lava  which 
clung  like  a  black  wart  on  the  glaciated  shoulder  of  the  valley. 
On  the  opposite  side,  still  higher,  we  could  see  a  beautiful  little 
crater  of  the  same  dark  rock  which  proved  conclusively  that  the 
volcanic  fires  had  illumined  the  glacier  since  ice  had  filled  the 
trough  to  the  brim. 


i9ii]  IN    THE    MOAT  135 

We  made  good  speed  up  the  glacier  and  camped  again  at 
the  west  end  of  the  Kukri  Hills.  After  supper  Wright  and  I 
went  over  to  the  great  '  glacier  moat '  which  separates  the  ice 
from  the  granite  cliffs.  I  was  very  anxious  to  see  whether  there 
was  any  evidence  of  erosion  by  the  glacier  on  the  cliffs  at  the 
foot  of  the  moat. 

We  carried  ice  axes  and  120  feet  of  Alpine  rope.  At  the 
edge  of  the  glacier  there  was  a  sharp  curve  formed  by  a  snow 
cornice.  Carefully  peering  over  the  edge,  we  could  see  there 
was  a  frozen  stream  about  200  feet  below. 

Wright  lowered  me  over  the  edge — which  I  found  was 
formed  of  soft  snow  and  projected,  like  the  eaves  of  a  house, 
about  ten  feet.  Some  thirty  feet  down  was  a  sort  of  platform 
and  then  the  steep  edge  of  the  great  glacier. 

Wright  paid  out  the  rope  and  I  let  myself  down  to  its  end, 
about  80  feet  above  the  moat.  I*  started  cutting  steps  down  the 
remainder,  but  my  ski  boots  were  so  worn  out  I  got  no  grip, 
and  I  reached  the  moat  purely  by  the  force  of  gravity.  My 
instruments  were  luckily  not  damaged  and  I  found  the  depth 
to  be  207  feet,  while  the  moat  was  100  feet  wide  at  the  bottom. 
Debris  screened  the  cliff  foot  and  I  could  see  no  planation  by 
the  ice. 

I  managed  to  cut  steps  up  to  the  rope  and  reached  the  plat- 
form under  the  cornice.  Wright  hauled  away  manfully,  with 
the  natural  but  unexpected  result  that  the  rope  cut  through  the 
snow  cornice  and  his  efforts  resulted  in  my  head  being  enveloped 
in  snow,  and  there  I  stopped.  I  cried  '  Lower  away/  reached  the 
platform  again,  and  crawled  along  under  the  cornice,  but  could 
see  no  way  out  of  the  cul-de-sac.  Gloomily  I  returned  to  the  rope 
and  descended  to  the  moat,  arriving  in  exactly  the  same  manner, 
save  that  the  skin  vanished  from  the  knuckles  of  my  left  hand 
this  time !  However,  after  tramping  some  distance  north  we 
found  a  place  where  the  cornice  had  broken  off,  and  here  I  was 
hauled  up,  my  ice  axe  finding  a  tender  spot  in  my  leg  as  I  reached 
'  glacier  '  firma. 

Our  rest  was  disturbed  all  night  by  a  sound  like  continuous 
volley-firing.  This  was  due  to  the  cooling  temperatures  causing 
the  glacier  to  contract  and  split. 

In  the  forenoon  Wright  and  P.O.  Evans  explored  the  ice 
falls  and  moraines  near  Solitary  Rocks  while  Debenham  and  I 


1 3  6  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

walked  towards  Knob  Head.  The  direction  of  the  moraines 
revealed  the  interesting  fact  that  all  the  ice  from  the  Plateau 
was  moving  into  Dry  Valley  and  not  into  the  Lower  Ferrar  as 
was  previously  supposed.  The  Ferrar  and  Taylor  Glaciers  are 
4  apposed  '  glaciers  linked  like  Siamese  twins  by  the  col  at  Knob 
Head.  Originally  they  were  quite  distinct,  and  they  will  again 
be  separated  when  the  ice  has  dwindled  a  little  farther. 

That  evening  we  discussed  literature.  P.O.  Evans  disliked 
Dickens  and  Kipling,  whom  Debenham  and  I  enjoy  thoroughly. 
Fie  preferred  a  well-known  foreign  writer  whose  name  he  very 
sensibly  pronounced  Dum-ass.  Our  sledging  library  was  quite 
extensive,  for  each  of  us  had  devoted  a  pound  of  our  personal 
allowance  to  books.  I  will  give  the  catalogue,  if  only  as  a 
caution  to  later  explorers.  Debenham  took  my  Browning  and 
the  'Autocrat';  Evans  had  a  William  le  Queux  and  the  Red 
Magazine;  Wright  had  two  mathematical  books,  both  in  Ger- 
man; I  took  Debenham's  Tennyson  and  three  small  German 
books.  The  Red  Magazine,  the  *  Autocrat,'  and  Browning  were 
most  often  read;  Evans'  contribution  being  an  easy  winner. 
Somehow  we  didn't  hanker  after  German. 

On  the  ioth  we  descended  1200  feet  down  a  series  of  undu- 
lations and  reached  our  depot  at  Cathedral  Rocks.  The  skua 
gulls  had  found  the  carcase  of  the  Emperor  and  our  chance  of 
a  variation  in  the  menu  had  departed  with  the  gulls. 

On  the  nth  Wright  and  Debenham  carried  out  a  very  im- 
portant operation  to  determine  the  movement  of  the  Ferrar 
Glacier.  They  fixed  stakes  right  across  the  glacier  which  were 
aligned  on  two  prominent  peaks.  Some  six  months  later  Captain 
Scott  re-measured  this  line  and  found  that  very  considerable 
movement,  amounting  to  30  feet,  had  taken  place  during  the 
winter. 

Meanwhile  P.O.  Evans  and  I  prospected  for  a  route  up  the 
steep  snow  slope  of  Descent  Pass.  Evans  had  been  with  Armi- 
tage  when  he  used  this  route  in  1903.  We  found  the  conditions 
very  different.  Soon  we  were  sinking  nearly  two  feet  at  every 
step  in  soft  snow,  through  which  I  knew  it  would  be  almost 
impossible  to  drag  the  sledges.  The  slope  soon  increased  to  1 1  °, 
so  that  we  found  some  difficulty  in  progressing  even  unencum- 
bered. There  I  first  made  the  acquaintance  of  the  '  Barrier 
Shudder.'    Every  now  and  then  a  shiver  would  shake  the  surface 


r 


i9n]  A   NARROW    ESCAPE  137 

and  we  could  hear  the  eerie  wave  of  sound  expanding  like  a 
ripple  all  around.  Sometimes  one  could  see  the  whole  snow 
surface  sinking  slightly,  and  at  first  the  effect  was  very  unpleasant. 

We  had  been  roped  for  two  miles  and  were  still  ascending. 
We  now  began  to  get  among  crevasses,  though  few  were  visible 
through  the  thick  sheet  of  snow.  Quite  suddenly  I  slipped  in 
to  the  thigh,  and  sounding  with  the  ice  axe  just  in  front  found 
two  inches  of  snow  over  the  crevasse  and  very  little  more  behind 
me.  I  was  evidently  standing  in  a  narrow  bridge.  At  the  same 
time  Evans  called  out  that  he  was  over  another  about  15  feet 
behind,  so  that  for  a  few  moments  things  were  rather  involved. 
He  got  back  on  to  firmer  ground  and  hauled  me  back,  and  when 
we  saw  the  surface  begin  to  cave  in  bodily  we  decided  in  Evans' 
graphic  language  to  '  give  it  a  miss.' 

We  seemed  to  be  in  the  least  impossible  part  of  the  pass,  and 
I  could  see  plenty  worse  ahead.  So  I  decided  to  abandon  this 
route  and  continue  down  the  Ferrar  to  Butter  Point  and  so 
reach  the  Koettlitz  Glacier  via  the  Piedmont  Glacier. 

During  our  absence  Wright  had  also  slipped  into  a  crevasse 
while  fixing  the  stake  nearest  Cathedral  Rocks.  We  inspanned 
after  lunch  and  moved  down  the  glacier  to  our  old  camp  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Ferrar. 

The  morning  of  February  13  was  bright  and  clear.  We 
could  see  no  change  in  the  sea  ice  filling  New  Harbour  where 
we  had  crossed  it  a  fortnight  before.  I  therefore  headed  south- 
east towards  Butter  Point.  Flere  we  had  an  experience  that 
might  have  ended  our  journey  prematurely. 

We  got  along  at  a  good  rate  for  two  miles,  when  Evans 
drew  my  attention  to  something  black  sticking  up  in  the  ice  just 
ahead. 

We  had  noticed  an  unusual  creaking  sound,  which  I  put  down 
to  ice  crystals  falling,  but  this  strange  object  demanded  investi- 
gation. I  ran  forward  a  little,  and  the  black  spike  was  obviously 
the  back  fin  of  a  killer  whale.  The  creaking  was  really  a  warning 
that  the  bay  ice  was  on  the  move.  Meanwhile  the  ice  I  was  on 
moved  off  with  a  jolt,  a  mark  of  attention  from  the  killer  which 
we  did  not  appreciate.  However  I  jumped  the  three-foot  crack 
which  resulted  and  we  hastened  to  the  fixed  ice  nearly  two  miles 
south.  It  was  a  case  of  '  festina  lente.'  We  couldn't  drag  the 
heavy  sledges  more  than  2  miles  an  hour  and  were  continually 


138  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

crossing  cracks  where  the  oozy  snow  and  creaking  showed  how 
insecure  was  our  passage.  Soon  after  we  reached  the  Butter 
Point  piedmont  the  whole  bay  ice  moved  off  in  great  floes  to  the 
northward,  so  that  seven  miles  of  it  had  broken  away  since  the 
ship  landed  us.  It  is  quite  impossible  to  tell  whether  sea  ice  is 
solid  or  not,  for  the  first  cracks  are  so  small  and  the  elevation 
of  the  eye  so  little  that  the  only  safe  way  to  traverse  sea  ice 
in  late  summer  is  to  keep  off  it! 

We  expected  to  find  the  Butter  Point  piedmont  an  easy  level 
surface,  but  of  its  kind  it  was  the  worst  I  met  with  down  South. 
All  the  afternoon  we  were  plugging  up  an  interminable  snow 
slope.  Just  as  one  got  one's  foot  braced  to  draw  the  sledges 
through  the  clinging  snow,  it  would  break  through  a  crust  and 
sink  nearly  to  the  knee.  Then  we  would  meet  a  few  yards  of 
firmer  surface  and  bet  whether  we  could  make  a  dozen  steps 
before  the  soft  '  mullock  '  started  again.  Even  worse  was  the 
jar  when  you  expected  deep  snow  and  found  a  firm  crust  one 
inch  below-  the  surface.  I  carried  a  pedometer,  and  when  we 
had  done  27,500  of  these  paces  I  felt  we  had  earned  our  supper. 

Blue  Glacier  now  confronted  us.  P.O.  Evans  and  I  pros- 
pected across  the  snout  and  were  glad  to  find  that  though  it 
showed  crevasses  in  places,  yet  it  was  so  free  from  snow  that  we 
should  have  no  great  difficulty  in  crossing  them.  They  curved 
round  parellel  to  the  coast,  and  of  course  lay  along  the  line 
of  our  march,  so  that  we  came  on  to  them  end-on  and  fell  in 
several  times.  But  by  the  evening  of  the  15th  we  were  safely 
camped  in  the  rugged  ice  south  of  the  crevassed  portion.  Evans 
as  usual  enlivened  us  with  navy  yarns.  He  illustrated  the  kind- 
ness of  the  sailorman  by  a  story  of  a  mate  of  his  who  started 
a  poultry-farm.  To  Jack's  disgust  the  ducks  in  his  yard  had  no 
belief  in  altruism  and  with  their  broad  bills  gave  the  hens  no 
chance.  '  So,'  said  Taff  Evans,  '  evenchooly  he  gets  a  file  and 
trims  their  bills  like  the  hens,  and  then  everything  went  all 
sprowsy !  ' 

If  any  one  had  asked  us  what  we  should  like  sent  post 
haste  from  civilisation  there  would  have  been  a  unanimous  yell 
of  '  Boots!  '  The  rough  scrambling  over  the  rocks  and  jagged 
ice  of  the  past  fortnight  and  the  alternate  soaking  and  freezing 
they  had  experienced  had  ruined  mine  completely.  Deep  con- 
strictions formed  in  the  leather  across  the  toe  and  behind  the 


i9n]  '  BROWNING    THE    BOOTS  '  139 

ankle  and  raised  great  blisters  and  even  boils  in  Debenham's  case. 
I  had  no  sole  on  the  right  foot,  but  within  the  next  day  or  so 
the  temperature  fell  considerably  and  the  thin  leather  lining 
froze  as  hard  as  steel  and  so  protected  my  foot.  For  days  a 
loose  boot-nail  which  had  accidentally  been  pressed  sideways  into 
the  sole  when  it  was  wet  clung  like  a  leech! 

Each  morning  we  had  a  painful  ceremony  when  it  was 
necessary  to  don  our  frozen  boots.  Remarks  more  fervid  than 
polite  flew  about  the  tent,  and  some  of  us  found  that  quotations 
from  the  poet  philosopher  lubricated  the  process. 

1 .  .  .  .  Gritstone, — gritstone  a-crumble  ; 
Clammy  squares  that  sweat,  as  if  the  corpse  they  keep 
Were  oozing  through  ' 

was  supposed  to  be  a  very  potent  incantation.  We  carried  no 
blacking,  but  this  ceremony  was  called  '  Browning  the  Boots.' 

Open  water  washed  the  face  of  the  Blue  Glacier.  Black 
snaky  heads — reminding  me  of  prehistoric  plesiosaurs' — could 
be  seen  darting  about  amid  the  brash  ice.  They  were  Emperor 
penguins,  which  swim  with  their  bodies  submerged. 

To  the  south  of  us  stretched  the  sea  ice,  which  was  evidently 
rotten  and  ready  to  move  north.  Beyond  the  Blue  Glacier  on 
the  right  stretched  a  broad  fringe  of  moraine  which  extended 
fairly  continuously  along  the  north  side  of  the  Koettlitz  Glacier. 
Immediately  ahead  of  us  was  a  fifty-foot  ice  cliff,  but  some  dis- 
tance to  the  south  we  found  a  lower  place  and  managed  with 
the  Alpine  rope  to  lower  the  sledges  down  to  the  sea  ice.  We 
crossed  the  '  pressure  ice  ' — where  great  cakes  had  been  up- 
ended to  form  a  frozen  rampart — and  reached  a  good  sledging 
surface  at  last.  Near  by  was  a  great  pool  of  water  containing 
many  seals,  where  jostling  ice  pancakes  were  surging  about,  so 
there  was  obviously  no  time  to  lose.  We  pushed  gaily  south  and 
camped  that  night  in  a  little  gravelly  dell  among  the  moraines. 

All  night  long  we  could  hear  the  groaning  of  the  sea  ice  as 
it  ground  on  the  coast.  A  most  melancholy  sound,  composed 
of  varying  notes  of  which  I  wrote  an  analysis  in  the  by  no  means 
stilly  watches  of  the  night  as  follows :  '  A  tiger's  growling  purr, 
plus  the  sough  and  whistle  of  the  wind  through  a  draughty  house, 
with  an  undercurrent  of  the  creak  due  to  hard  breeches  rubbing 
on  a  new  leather  saddle.' 


140  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

On  February  17  we  arrived  at  the  lower  reaches  of  the 
Koettlitz  Glacier.  For  the  lower  twenty-five  miles  this  great 
ice-river  rises  but  little  above  sea  level.  But  what  a  river! 
South  of  the  Dailey  Isles,  where  it  merges  with  the  Great  Ice 
Barrier,  it  is  ten  miles  wide.  A  region  of  icy  pinnacles  and 
bastions,  of  lakes  and  winding  gullies,  as  if  a  storm-lashed  sea 
had  suddenly  been  clutched  in  the  grip  of  King  Frost.  Most 
picturesque  in  appearance,  but  as  a  sledging  proposition  it  can 
only  be  described  as  infernal ! 

Soon  after  leaving  the  sea  ice  we  plunged  into  a  maze  of 
'  glass-house  '  and  '  bottle-glass  '  ice,  whose  names  almost  ex- 
plain themselves.  The  former  were  great  curved  platforms 
often  thirty  feet  wide,  which  threw  us  all  together  in  the  middle 
and  then  dropped  us  several  feet  through  the  '  glass  '  into  a  pool 
of  water  beneath.  The  '  bottle-glass  '  was  due  to  the  sun  melt- 
ing the  ice  ripples  into  a  thousand  spikes  and  edges  which  re- 
ceived us  when  we  fell — which  happened  every  few  minutes. 

Finally  we  sledged  along  the  '  lower  storey  '  below  the  glass- 
house surface — on  the  floor  of  the  drained  lakes;  twisting  round 
ice  pillars,  pulling  the  sledges  under  sheets  of  projecting  ice, 
lifting  them  over  barriers.  But  it  got  worse  instead  of  better, 
and  at  last  I  decided  to  return  to  the  land  and  make  our  depot 
here  instead  of  higher  up  the  Koettlitz,  as  I  had  hoped  to  do. 
To  reach  the  moraine  we  had  to  cross  a  sort  of  *  rip  '  where 
a  strong  deep  current  of  water  flowed  northward.  Along  this 
seals  used  to  appear  and  would  stop  to  study  our  movements 
with  some  interest. 

This  camp  on  the  moraine  marked  the  end  of  the  third  week. 
We  celebrated  it  by  killing  a  seal,  and  next  day  fried  his  liver. 
This  was  also  a  memorable  day  because,  as  someone  remarked, 
I  started  cooking  and  we  all  lived  through  it ! 

I  cut  off  a  piece  of  the  seal's  belly-skin  and  sewed  pieces  over 
my  worn-out  boots.  It  wasn't  a  very  neat  job,  for  it  was  done 
with  a  marlin  spike  and  waxed  yarn — but  as  soon  as  I  started 
walking  the  soft  seal-skin  changed  to  armour-plate,  and  when 
ultimately  I  wanted  to  remove  these  *  brogans  '  I  had  to  break 
them  off  with  my  geological  hammer. 

We  spent  two  days  exploring  the  very  interesting  region  be- 
hind the  moraines.  Long  parallel  valleys,  each  containing  a 
dwindling  valley  glacier,  led  towards  the  scarp  below  the  Royal 


i9"]  A    CLOVE-HITCH  141 

Society  Range.  Thirteen  thousand  feet  above  us  towered  Mount 
Lister,  but  we  rarely  saw  the  crest,  for  it  was-  buried  in  clouds 
for  the  greater  part  of  our  journey. 

On  the  20th  we  left  one  sledge  at  the  depot  and  made  an- 
other attempt  to  penetrate  the  fastnesses  of  the  Koettlitz  Glacier. 

We  had  to  cut  tracks  along  the  bottom  of  the  glass-house 
channels,  and  Debenham  and  I  pulled  while  Wright  and  Evans 
devoted  all  their  energies  to  lifting  the  sledge  over  the  obstruc- 
tions. The  sledge  dropped  two  feet  and  rolled  upside  down  on 
one  occasion,  and  later  Wright  went  through  the  roof  and  was 
completely  lost  to  sight  in  one  of  the  glass-houses.  By  6  p.m. 
we  must  have  progressed  almost  two  miles — and  this  with  a  light 
load!  A  thick  snowstorm  came  up  and  we  camped  amid  weird 
surroundings.  All  round  us  were  ice  sculptures  of  every  con- 
ceivable shape.  There  were  great  wedge-shaped  blocks,  so 
fretted  by  the  sun  that  they  looked  as  if  formed  of  wicker  work. 
We  called  these  '  fascines.'  Others  resembled  giant  pedestal- 
tables  with  fringes  of  icicles.  Near  the  tent,  displayed  on  one  of 
these  tables,  was  a  great  white  monster  with  an  armour-plated 
back,  head,  legs,  and  tail  complete.  We  called  this  halt  '  Arma- 
dillo Camp  '  in  recognition  of  the  genius  of  King  Frost. 

During  the  next  four  days  we  struggled  up  the  middle  of  the 
Koettlitz  Glacier.  It  was  a  strenuous  time,  but  I  recall  a  pleasant 
noon  halt  when  P.O.  Evans  earned  an  honest  penny.  We  saw 
him  playing  with  the  rope  which  lashed  his  sleeping-bag.  Says 
Evans,  '  I'll  show  you  how  to  make  a  clove-hitch  with  one  hand, 
and  I  bet  you  a  is.  3^.  dinner  (our  usual  currency)  you  can't  do 
it  after  you've  seen  me  do  it  six  times !  '  Debenham  took  the 
bet,  and  we  all  watched  Evans  closely.  Then  '  Deb.'  tried,  and 
to  our  joy  succeeded,  for  the  handy-man  was  rarely  '  done.'  But 
he  never  turned  a  hair,  and  booked  the  bets  that  now  filled  the 
air.  Again  Debenham  proceeded  to  try,  and  failed— and  Wright 
and  I  were  equally  unsuccessful.  Evans  made  quite  a  haul,  but 
after  saying  he  had  never  seen  anyone  do  it  by  sheer  luck  before 
he  proceeded  to  teach  us  the  dodge;  and  later  Debenham  be- 
came quite  a  knot-master  under  his  willing  tuition. 

1  A  fine  sunny  morning,  the  first  for  many  days.  Even  this 
scene  of  desolation  looks  cheerful.'  Thus  my  sledge  diary  for 
the  2 1  st.  But  the  route  did  not  improve.  I  wrote:  'We  got 
going  on  awful  stuff — rounded  pools  of  ice,  between  tables.     It 


142  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

got  worse  and  worse,  and  after  many  bumps  and  leaps  and  falls 
I  decided  to  prospect.  We  had  done  half  a  mile  in  the  hour. 
.  .  .  We  started  again  about  3  p.m.  Awful  heavy  work  over 
"  glass-house  "  and  leaping  three-foot  chasms,  between  high  fas- 
cines and  across  decomposing  rivers  of  ice.' 

About  4.30  we  saw  a  ragged  piece  of  skin  projecting  from 
under  an  ice-table  and  found  that  it  was  part  of  a  large  fish. 
We  spent  half  an  hour  chipping  it  out  and  recovered  the  dorsal 
spines,  skin,  tail  and  the  vertebrae.  These  were  preserved  in  a 
yellow  fatty  substance  smelling  like  vaseline  and  quite  soft.  I 
made  rather  a  ludicrous  mistake  here.  I  carefully  preserved  a 
very  hard  irregular  mass  coated  with  this  flesh,  thinking  it  was 
a  bone,  but  later,  after  we  had  carried  it  for  days  on  the  sledge, 
we  found  that  this  *  pelvic  bone  '  as  we  called  it — melted  in  warm 
water !  No  head  was  found  and  in  this  respect  the  fish — which 
was  possibly  about  four  feet  long — agrees  with  the  four  large 
headless  fish  found  by  the  Discovery  Expedition.  We  had  a  hot 
discussion  in  the  hut  as  to  this  problem  of  decapitation,  but 
came  to  no  definite  conclusion,  for  it  seemed  too  far  for  seals 
to  carry  it. 

That  night  we  slept  at  Park  Lane  Camp.  We  had  been 
traversing  a  frozen  park,  set  out  in  circular  beds  with  winding 
paths  in  every  direction.  The  *  flower  beds  '  were  represented 
by  elevated  masses  of  ice  thirty  feet  across,  exactly  like  an 
apple-pie  with  a  raised  crust — even  to  the  four  cuts  made  by 
the  housewife  across  the  top!  The  last  two  days  we  had  only 
progressed  seven  miles,  and  for  five  of  them  we  had  carried 
the  sledge  rather  than  dragged  it.     [See  Illustration,  page  422.] 

Next  day,  however,  we  found  that  to  the  south  the  glacier 
was  nearly  continuous.  It  had  not  been  dissected  by  thaw- 
waters  to  nearly  the  same  extent,  and  by  4  p.m.  we  managed  to 
advance  ten  miles  to  the  south-west.  We  camped  on  a  platform 
of  weathered  ice,  so  rotten  that  it  resembled  a  layer  of  honey- 
comb. We  found  that  this  honeycomb  ice  was  very  common  in 
this  part  of  the  Koettlitz. 

We  tried  to  find  an  easier  way  out  of  the  numerous  undula- 
tions which  now  characterised  the  surface,  but  unsuccessfully 
and  so  plugged  on  south-west.  We  used  to  *  pully-haul '  up  one 
side  (i.e.  hand  over  hand)  and  then  toboggan  down  the  other. 
P.O.  Evans  was  an  expert  steersman,  while  we  others  used  to 


[Seep.  211 
THE    KOETTLITZ    GLACIER,    JUST    NORTH    OF    HEALD    ISLAND,    SHOWING    ICE 
PINNACLES,    ETC.,   NEARLY   ONE   HUNDRED   FEET   HIGH 


* 


~*  •.  **^«*~ 


L 


ALPH   AVENUE,    WHERE    WE    EMERGED    FROM   THE    PINNACLE    ICE 

(Wright  and  Edgar  Evans  can  be  distinguished  in  the  middle  distance) 


i9ii]  THE   TERMINAL   CAMP  143 

keep  the  ropes  clear.  But  we  had  some  nasty  falls,  especially 
Evans,  who  got  a  cut  deep  in  his  palm  from  a  piece  of  '  bottle- 
glass  '  ice,  in  spite  of  his  thick  mitts. 

At  noon  we  came  across  a  picturesque  tunnel  in  the  ice, 
about  three  feet  wide,  seven  feet  high,  and  one  hundred  feet 
long.  It  had  been  cut  out  by  thaw  waters  which  had  now  drained 
away. 

In  and  out  wound  the  lanes,  forming  a  regular  network 
through  all  sort  of  picturesque  pinnacles.  Here  was  one  like 
a  yacht  on  stocks,  there  a  perfect  wedding-cake  twelve  feet  high, 
again  a  lady's  bonnet  and  so  on  in  infinite  variety.  At  close  of 
day  we  pitched  Camp  Labyrinth. 

On  the  24th  we  emerged  from  the  pinnacles  and  reached 
the  coast  moraines  again  near  Heald  Island.  Here  I  decided 
to  make  our  terminal  camp.  In  a  gravelly  hollow  we  pitched 
the  tent  and  next  morning  was  devoted  to  a  '  make  and  mend.' 
All  our  sleeping-bags  and  finnesko  were  wet  with  the  sloppy  ice- 
floors  of  the  last  week — for  we  had  not  been  able  to  find  any 
snow-drifts  on  which  to  camp.  They  are  much  warmer  and 
drier  than  ice. 

Behind  the  tent  to  the  north  were  slopes  about  1000  feet 
high  leading  to  empty  '  hanging '  valleys.  These  radiated  from 
the  base  of  the  Lister  scarp,  which  rose  in  one  steep  face  10,000 
feet  to  the  summit.  This  face  was  pitted  by  gigantic  cup  valleys 
or,  as  they  are  technically  called,  cwms,  and  presented  a  spectacle 
which  probably  could  be  paralleled  nowhere  in  the  world. 

Looking  southward  across  the  Koettlitz  from  the  mouth  of 
one  of  these  hanging  valleys  one  could  see  some  sort  of  plan 
in  the  icy  maze  which  had  so  bewildered  us.  Above  Heald 
Island  the  valley  was  filled  with  the  glacial  stream  in  a  normal 
uniform  mass,  interrupted  only  by  crevasses  and  falls.  But  to 
the  east  of  Heald  Island  it  took  the  form  of  a  glacier  '  delta.' 
Below  the  falls  the  ice  descended  to  the  east  in  a  series  of  broad 
undulations,  a  portion  of  which  we  had  traversed  on  the  23rd. 
Long  promontories  of  ice  fifty  feet  high  extended  from  the  un- 
broken glacier  mass  and  probably  represented  the  crests  of  the 
undulations.  These  degenerated  at  the  ends  into  icebergs  and 
monoliths  of  ice,  and  these  again  had  weathered  into  the  bastions 
and  pinnacles.  Lower  down  the  thaw  waters  had  etched  these 
into  still  smaller  units,  and  along  the  coast  just  below  me  the 


144  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

streams  had  formed  a  well-defined  if  narrow  avenue  of  smooth 
ice,  which  promised  us  an  easier  return. 

On  these  slopes  I  found  an  ice-scratched  block — the  only 
specimen  I  had  seen  in  a  hundred  miles  of  moraine  debris ! 

I  returned  to  the  tent  along  the  margin  of  the  glacier  and 
was  amazed  to  see  seal-tracks  in  the  fresh  snow.  We  were 
over  twenty  miles  from  the  sea  and  had  not  seen  any  possible 
route  for  seals  on  our  outward  journey.  Yet  here  were  two 
seals — asleep  as  usual — on  the  old  glacier  ice.  I  disturbed  one 
of  them  to  see  what  it  would  do.  He  sneezed  and  grunted  at 
me.  When  I  teased  him  further  he  began  to  warble !  I  heaved 
a  lump  of  ice  at  him,  whereupon  he  lolloped  twenty  yards  to 
a  wet  patch,  lay  over  on  his  side,  and  produced  a  whole  octave 
of  musical  notes  from  his  chest,  ranging  up  to  a  canary-like 
chirrup.  Finally  he  crawled  under  a  deep  ledge,  and  vigorously 
butting  with  his  shoulders,  opened  out  a  hole  and  flopped  under 
the  avenue  ice. 

I  soon  reached  camp  and  found  that  Wright  and  Debenham 
had  both  met  parties  of  seals.  We  ail  thought  of  the  constant 
stream  along  the  tide  crack  by  our  last  depot  and  came  to  the 
conclusion  that  this  was  largely  fresh  water  and  formed  the  main 
drainage  of  the  Upper  Koettlitz.  By  this  sub-glacial  stream 
the  seals  penetrated  nearly  thirty  miles  inland  up  the  Koettlitz 
Glacier. 

On  the  26th  we  crossed  the  glacier  to  Heald  Island — which 
projected  a  thousand  feet  above  the  glacier  and  separated  it  into 
two  streams  of  ice.  While  Debenham  collected  garnets  and 
other  interesting  minerals,  I  climbed  the  island  and  sketched 
the  topography  up  the  glacier. 

In  the  silts  amid  the  ice  we  found  large  sponges  and  a 
fungus-like  alga.  The  sponge  must  have  been  brought  up  by 
the  ice  from  marine  waters  at  some  period  far  back  in  history. 
The  alga  had  probably  grown  in  a  glacier  pond,  since  drained 
away. 

Next  day  we  marched  twelve  miles  west  to  explore  a  large 
tributary  glacier  which  we  could  see  across  the  the  low-level 
lateral  moraine.  After  crossing  two  miles  of  moraine  we  sud- 
denly came  on  a  steep  gully  about  100  feet  deep,  at  the  bottom 
of  which  was  a  strongly  flowing  stream.  This  originated  in 
a  lake  three-quarters  of  a  mile  long,  but  for  a  considerable  dis- 


ICE    CRYSTALS    ON    THE    ROOF    OF   A   CAVE    AT    THE    HEAD    OF 
THE   ALPH    RIVER 


A    STEEP    GULLY    CUT    BY    THE    ALPH    RIVER    THROUGH    THE    ANCIENT 
LATERAL   MORAINE    OF   THE    KOETTLITZ   GLACIER 


i9ii]  OUR    GOAL  145 

tance  flowed  under  the  moraine,  and  ultimately  entered  the  seals' 
sub-glacial  stream  and  so  reached  the  sea.  Coleridge's  lines 
entered  one's  mind : 

'  There  Alph  the  sacred  river  ran 
Through  caverns  measureless  to  man 
Down  to  a  sunless  sea.' 

So  we  christened  this  stream  the  Alph  River. 

We  marched  along  the  lake  and  up  the  gully  beyond.  Here 
a  tributary  entered  from  a  large  cave  in  the  moraine  wall  to 
the  north.  The  roof  of  this  cave  was  coated  with  most  beautiful 
ice  crystals,  which  resembled  pine  twigs  in  shape  and  were  about 
two  inches  long.  Many  brownish  ice  stalactites  and  stalagmites 
fringed  the  walls  of  the  cave  and  Wright  was  lucky  in  obtaining 
some  beautiful  photos  of  these  structures. 

At  4  p.m.  we  reached  our  goal — the  steep  face  of  the  Walcott 
glacier,  but  as  the  weather  looked  stormy  we  had  to  retreat 
immediately.  Wright  and  I  compared  compass  readings  here. 
The  needles  swung  extremely  sluggishly,  but  we  found  they  were 
reliable  to  four  degrees — which  is  about  eight  times  the  ordinary 
error.  The  fact  that  magnetic  south  was  nearly  due  north  also 
complicated  matters  here !  We  marched  back  by  a  different 
route  and  discovered  a  strong  outcrop  of  basic  lava  about  fifty 
feet  thick  which  was  rich  in  olivine  and  had  caught  up  fragments 
of  garnet  rock  in  its  passage  through  the  earth's  crust. 

The  month  of  March  opened  with  a  bright  sunny  morning, 
just  suited  for  our  proposed  climb  up  one  of  the  hinterland 
ranges.  We  climbed  up  the  slope  about  eight  hundred  feet  and 
so  reached  the  level  floor  of  the  '  hanging  valley  '  just  behind  the 
camp.  We  marched  along  this  to  the  north  end  of  the  valley 
towards  a  prominent  peak  on  the  eastern  ridge.  A  stiff  climb 
over  snow  slopes  and  rugged  granite  led  to  the  summit  which 
we  reached  at  1  P.M.  The  aneroid  made  this  3000  feet  above 
sea-level.  It  was  a  beautiful  day  and  we  could  see  Erebus, 
Discovery,  Morning,  and  the  Pyramid  up  the  Koettlitz.  Lister 
itself  as  usual  was  in  the  clouds,  but  nearly  all  below  was  visible. 
We  could  see  numerous  hinterland  ridges  reaching  from  the 
Lower  Koettlitz  to  the  Lister  scarp,  and  satisfied  ourselves  that 
no  lateral  '  Snow  Valley  '  existed  below  the  scarp  such  as  has 
been  indicated  in  earlier  maps. 

VOL.   II — 10 


146  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [March 

It  was  very  cold  on  this  hill  (which  we  called  Terminus 
Mountain)  ;  and  after  swinging  the  theodolite  and  taking  sev- 
eral photographs  we  hurried  back  to  the  tent  down  Ward 
Valley. 

On  March  2  we  started  our  homeward  trek;  nothing  could 
be  worse  than  our  outward  track  up  the  middle  of  the  glacier 
— though  we  were  able  to  study  the  changes  of  the  glacier  ice 
and  so  did  not  regret  it.  I  therefore  decided  to  hug  the  coast 
on  our  return,  though  near  the  depot  the  ice  was  so  full  of  silt 
from  the  moraines  that  we  had  not  seen  any  feasible  route  along 
the  coast  thereabouts. 

For  the  next  few  days  we  followed  the  course  of  the  sub- 
glacial  Alph  River.  Some  four  miles  down  stream  from  Termi- 
nus Camp  a  rampart  of  ice  pinnacles  commenced,  which  re- 
called the  monoliths  of  Stonehenge.  These  walled  off  the  rough 
sea  of  the  Koettlitz  Glacier  from  the  frozen  surface  of  the 
'  river.'  This  broad  lane  was  here  a  quarter  of  a  mile  wide 
and  consisted  of  a  level  surface  broken  up  by  deep  sunken 
1  paths.'  The  more  elevated  areas  were  preferable  for  sledging, 
for  the  paths  occasionally  let  us  through  into  water.  The  whole 
structure  was  due  to  the  drainage  of  water  away  from  rivers  and 
lakelets  whose  surface  had  frozen. 

This  splendid  track — which  we  called  '  Alph  Avenue  ' — 
enabled  us  to  proceed  with  unexpected  ease,  and  each  day  we 
halted  and  explored  one  of  the  numerous  tributary  valleys  which 
characterised  the  hinterland. 

Each  valley  was  of  the  same  type.  A  great  bar  of  debris 
— a  terminal  moraine  in  fact — some  three  hundred  feet  high 
blocked  the  mouth  of  the  tributary.  Within  this  was  a  bare 
rounded  valley  extending  to  the  foot  of  Lister.  Some  five 
miles  from  the  coast  was  the  snout  of  a  tributary  glacier  which 
had  originally  deposited  the  moraine,  but  now  was  shrunk  back 
to  a  mere  shadow  of  its  former  self. 

All  along  our  route  were  groups  of  seals,  and  numerous 
skua  gulls  enlivened  the  surroundings.  Coming  back  from  one 
of  our  detours  I  was  much  amused  to  see  Wright  crawling 
about  among  the  seals  in  his  investigation  of  the  ice — while 
thirty  skuas  were  anxiously  awaiting  the  demise  of  this  obviously 
crazy  seal! 

The  summer  was  over  now  and  we  were  getting  fifty  degrees 


.   .     ......  , 


W 

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H 
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PQ 

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o 


1911J 


A    HIGH    TIDE  147 


of  frost  in  the  nights.  The  weather  was  gloomy,  the  sun  rarely 
appearing  till  it  had  sunk  below  the  level  of  the  pail  of  stratus. 

We  had  an  eventful  lunch  just  before  reaching  our  depot. 
We  pitched  the  tent  and  fastened  the  door  to  keep  out  the 
wind.  I  was  sitting  next  the  door  with  my  precious  lumps  of 
sugar  on  the  floor  cloth  when  I  noticed  that  water  was  creeping 
into  the  tent.  In  a  few  seconds  it  was  several  inches  deep. 
We  bolted  our  raisins,  pocketed  the  lumps  of  butter  and  sugar 
and  rushed  out  with  the  sleeping-bags.  There  was  a  small  lake 
all  round  us,  rapidly  rising  round  sledge  and  tent.  The  water 
was  rushing  out  of  a  crack  one  hundred  yards  below  us,  probably 
driven  back  by  a  high  tide.  We.  had  quite  a  pilgrimage  to  get 
our  sledge  packed  again,  having  to  walk  round  the  newly  formed 
bay. 

The  avenue  petered  out  here,  after  furnishing  us  with  a  mag- 
nificent highway  for  twenty  miles.  We  had  some  pretty  rough 
work  for  the  next  mile  or  so,  but  reached  our  depot  safely  on 
the  evening  of  the  5th.  We  had  a  fine  feed  of  seal  liver  fried 
in  blubber.  Debenham  was  cook  and  P.O.  Evans  was  frankly 
sceptical  as  to  the  result.  He  took  his  whack  gingerly,  but 
handsomely  acknowledged  it  tasted  much  better  than  in  Dis- 
covery days.  We  turned  over  the  fry  with  my  bowie  knife  and 
found  that  safety-pins  made  excellent  forks. 

On  the  6th  we  started  across  the  head  of  McMurdo  Sound 
to  reach  Ross  Island.  We  had  now  two  sledges  to  pull,  but 
the  surface  was  good  and  we  soon  approached  the  Dailey  Isles. 
We  made  an  interesting  discovery  here.  All  around  were  heaps 
of  large  sponges — a  foot  in  diameter — buried  in  snow  and  ice. 
Among  the  long  spicules  we  found  Bryozoa,  Brachiopoda,  Ser- 
pulae,  mollusca,  and  a  fine  '  solitary  '  coral. 

That  evening  we  climbed  West  Dailey  Isle — a  mass  of  vol- 
canic lava  600  feet  high — to  try  to  see  the  extent  of  open  water. 
The  head  of  McMurdo  Sound  is  occupied  by  a  broad  wedge  of 
pinnacle  ice  about  twelve  miles  wide  at  its  base.  It  was  neces- 
sary either  to  cross  this  or  go  right  round  it.  We  had  had  such 
heavy  work  with  one  light  sledge  that  the  latter  route  seemed 
the  best,  even  though  it  was  more  than  twice  the  distance. 

For  the  next  two  days  we  marched  north — almost  the  oppo- 
site direction  from  our  destination  at  Hut  Point.  At  noon  halt 
we  found  that  Debenham  had  two  toes  frostbitten — owing  to 


148  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [March 

a  tight  boot — but  with  rubbing  they  came  back  all  right.  We 
camped  at  the  edge  of  the  pinnacles,  which  here  were  over  thirty 
feet  high  and  separated  by  deep  gullies  filled  with  snags,  glass- 
house, and  all  manner  of  obstructions. 

Next  day  we  moved  along  the  edge  of  the  pinnacles,  which 
led  us  towards  Butter  Point,  much  to  our  disgust.  During  the 
forenoon  we  had  heard  weird  '  blowings  '  on  our  right,  but  it 
was  rather  a  shock  to  come  on  a  great  bay  in  the  pinnacle  ice, 
where  the  latter  had  recently  broken  off,  and  to  see  our  friends 
the  killer  whales  cruising  around  only  ioo  yards  ahead!  We 
had  to  turn  at  once  and  march  willy-nilly  into  the  pinnacles,  so 
as  to  put  a  little  distance  between  ourselves  and  the  recent  break 
of  '  Orca  Bay.' 

Before  going  many  yards  into  the  pinnacles  we  came  on 
a  '  river  '  of  salt  water,  fifty  feet  or  so  below  the  general  level. 
Luckily  the  pancake  ice  from  Orca  Bay  had  jammed  in  this 
1  river  '  and  it  was  strong  enough  to  carry  the  sledges.  We 
hauled  them  hand  over  hand  up  the  further  bank. 

After  lunch  we  came  to  a  fifteen-foot  drop  and  we  had  of 
course  to  adopt  relaying.  Either  Debenham  or  myself  went 
ahead  as  quickly  as  possible  and  found  a  route  by  climbing  pin- 
nacles or  bastions.  The  other  three  pulled  the  smaller  sledge  as 
indicated  by  the  guide.  After  a  mile  or  so  we  all  went  back 
and  pulled  the  heavy  sledge  up  to  the  other. 

Next  day  passed  in  the  same  way,  but  we  were  cheered 
by  the  sight  of  a  patch  of  smooth  surface  ahead  of  us.  Though 
only  four  miles  off  it  took  us  nearly  two  days  to  reach  it. 
Bad  sandy  patches  delayed  us  and  ruined  the  runners.  On 
returning  with  the  second  sledge  we  could  often  see  what  looked 
like  wisps  of  yellow  tobacco  in  the  lee  of  the  jagged  points  of 
ice.  These  were  long  filaments  of  ash  torn  from  our  unfortunate 
runners. 

So  passed  Edgar  Evans'  birthday,  in  honour  of  which  we 
had  some  superfine  chocolates  which  seemed  in  some  way  to  bring 
us  in  touch  with  civilisation  again. 

At  noon  on  the  ioth  we  reached  sea  ice  again  beyond  the 
pinnacles  and  had  good  hopes  of  reaching  Hut  Point  by  night, 
for  it  was  only  a  little  over  ten  miles  away.  I  wrote  in  my 
diary :  '  The  surface  got  so  much  better  that  we  decided  to 
get  to  Hut  Point  or  bust !     About  5  p.m.  we  decided  to  bust, 


i9ii]  SLEDGE   TRACKS  149 

for  there  was  five  miles  of  water  between  us  and  the  hut.  So 
we  deviated  with  what  speed  we  might  to  the  south,  gradually 
veering  in  the  teeth  of  a  young  blizzard.' 

In  the  morning  we  could  see  frost  smoke  rising  from  the 
water  apparently  for  miles  right  across  our  track.  In  place  of 
reaching  the  hut  in  one  day  we  evidently  had  a  long  detour 
to  make  to  get  around  the  open  water.  We  called  this  place 
1  Camp  Had  Again  '  for  obvious  reasons,  and  started  off,  after 
digging  out  the  sledges  and  tent,  once  more  directly  away  from 
our  objective. 

We  pulled  six  miles  south  before  lunch,  leaving  Hut  Point 
behind  us  on  the  left.  The  end  of  the  great  bay  seemed  in 
sight  now  and  I  felt  justified  in  bearing  east  a  little.  We  were 
only  half  a  mile  from  the  water  when  we  came  on  sledge  tracks, 
and  these  puzzled  us  greatly.  We  thought  they  must  have  been 
made  by  a  depot  party  but  could  see  no  depot.  I  wrote  '  It  is 
not  possible  it  has  gone  out,  as  undoubtedly  some  of  the  Barrier 
has?' 

As  a  matter  of  fact  these  were  the  tracks  of  the  rescue  party 
who  had  tried  to  save  the  ponies  when  Bowers,  Cherry-Garrard, 
and  Crean  went  adrift  only  ten  days  before.  In  view  of  our 
experiences  the  next  few  days  I  was  glad  we  did  not  know  of  this 
disaster. 

A  strong  drift  was  blowing  when  we  broke  camp,  but  we 
could  see  the  sun  and  had  bearings,  so  we  moved  round  the 
open  water  to  the  north.  After  two  miles  we  saw  something 
black  which  turned  out  to  be  a  fodder  depot.  We  built  it 
up,  for  it  was  nearly  invisible,  and  left  a  note  for  the  Depot 
Party,  which  was  waste  labour,  for  they  had  all  returned  a  week 
before. 

The  wind  increased  in  force,  but  we  kept  on  till  noon,  when 
we  came  to  open  water  and  a  great  crack  in  the  Barrier.  Here 
the  surface  rose  several  feet  quite  sharply  and  Wright  nearly 
slipped  in  as  we  were  crossing.  The  drift  was  getting  very 
much  worse  and  we  could  see  nothing  a  few  yards  ahead.  I  felt 
this  was  a  bad  position  and  turned  inland;  we  pulled  about  three- 
quarters  of  an  hour  and  could  not  get  any  farther  through  the 
blinding  snow.  We  managed  to  pitch  the  tent  and  then  sat  down 
to  wait  till  the  blizzard  would  let  us  move  somewhere  less  ex- 
citing and  farther  from  the  breaking  edge  of  the  Barrier.    Here, 


150  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [March 

however,  we  stopped  all  through  the  next  day  and  until  ten  on 
the  third  day. 

It  was  the  worst  blizzard  I  experienced  while  sledging  in 
the  South,  and  in  consequence  my  sledge  diary  is  rather  scrappy. 
I  wrote :  '  Finally  decided  to  have  an  early  supper  and  turn  into 
our  wet  bags.  We  lit  the  primus  and  let  the  flame  singe  our 
feet  to  warm  them.  Talked  of  Cambridge  cakes  and  teas  and 
other  delights.  Evans  told  a  cheerful  tale  of  the  snow  round 
the  tent  at  Cape  Crozier  which  pinned  them  in  for  five  days  in 
September  1903!  We  can't  see  100  feet  anywhere.  The  rime 
is  dripping  down  my  neck  and  covering  our  bags.  Drifts  are 
slipping  off  the  tent.  Wind  veering  somewhat  southerly  from 
south-east.  Now  and  again  we  peep  out  of  the  door,  but  no 
improvement.  Couldn't  get  on  to  the  shore  probably  to  camp, 
as  the  water  is  evidently  exceptionally  far  to  the  east.  .  .  . 
Guess  we'll  shiver  it  out.  The  booming  of  the  lid  of  the  bis- 
cuit tin  outside  is  like  the  Inch  Cape  Bell !  ' 

The  next  day  was  much  the  same,  but  though  the  blizzard 
blew  as  strong  as  ever,  driving  the  drift  in  great  sheets  into  the 
open  sound,  yet  I  felt  that  as  we  had  got  through  one  day  and 
night  all  right,  so  we  should  the  next;  which  is  very  common 
if  unscientific  logic! 

On  the  14th  it  lulled  a  bit  by  10  A.M.,  and  as  we  knew  the 
direction,  I  decided  to  make  for  Castle  Rock.  The  blizzard  had 
piled  a  long  snow  slope  in  the  lee  of  our  tent,  100  feet  to  the 
north-west  of  the  sledges.  We  dug  out  the  sledges  and  packed 
the  gear,  and  then  marched  out,  the  wind  helping  us  materially. 

I  anticipated  some  trouble  from  the  tide  crack  next  the  land 
which  P.O.  Evans  had  crossed  in  1903.  However  all  was  lost 
to  view  in  the  mist  of  drift,  though  we  seemed  to  be  ascending. 
Nevertheless  we  could  see  Castle  Rock  at  intervals  and  steered 
by  that.  I  thought  we  must  have  crossed  the  tide  crack  un- 
knowingly, when  the  sun  appeared  and  showed  us  we  were  one- 
third  of  the  way  up  the  promontory !  With  its  customary  irra- 
tionality Antarctica  had  decided  to  dispense  with  a  tide  crack  in 
191 1,  though  the  next  expedition  will  probably  find  a  chasm 
fifty  feet  deep  where  the  Barrier  presses  on  Ross  Island. 

We  joyfully  had  lunch,  transferred  all  necessaries  to  the 
big  sledge,  and  pulled  up  the  1000  feet  to  Castle  Rock,  which 
we  reached  in  two  hours.     We  had  a  short  rest  and  then  pro- 


i9i  i]  AT    CAPE    EVANS  151 

ceeded  to  tackle  the  last  two  miles  which  lay  along  the  crest  of 
the  promontory.  Here  I  saw  Evans  over-cautious  for  the  first 
time,  but  I  can  well  understand  his  feelings.  This  was  March 
14,  and  on  the  same  day  in  1903,  after  a  heavy  blizzard,  he  and 
his  mates  were  in  the  same  spot  trying  to  reach  the  hut.  They 
went  astray  in  the  drift,  and  poor  Vince  lost  his  footing  and 
slipped  down  Danger  Slope  into  the  sea. 

However  there  was  no  drift  at  this  height,  and  we  pro- 
ceeded easily  enough  past  Castle  Rock  and  got  on  to  the  broad 
ridge  beyond.  After  a  mile  or  so  we  saw  four  men  over  toward 
Crater  Heights.  A  great  sight;  though  it  was  comic  to  see 
them  marching  in  a  row  in  their  swollen  wind  clothes.  Except 
for  their  swinging  arms,  they  looked  to  us  just  like  a  row  of  the 
Emperor  penguins  we  had  seen  in  New  Harbour.  They  were 
Wilson,  Bowers,  Atkinson,  and  Cherry-Garrard.  These  told 
us  the  news  and  took  charge  of  our  sledge,  while  I  went  off  and 
made  my  report  to  Captain  Scott. 


CHAPTER    II 

THE  GEOLOGICAL  EXPEDITION  TO  GRANITE 

HARBOUR 

During  January,  February,  and  March  191 1  the  Western 
Geological  Party  had  investigated  the  coast  and  hinterland  south 
of  Cape  Bernacchi  to  Mt.  Discovery.  Captain  Scott  decided 
that  this  survey  should  be  continued  northward  to  Granite  Har- 
bour and  that  special  attention  should  be  given  to  the  hinterland 
at  this  locality,  if  we  could  find  a  track  up  the  ice  falls  of  the 
Mackay  Glacier. 

His  sledging  instructions  to  me  commence  as  follows :  '  The 
objects  of  your  journey  have  been  discussed  and  need  not  here 
be  particularised.  In  general  they  comprise  the  geological  ex- 
ploration of  the  coast  of  Victoria  Land. 

4  Your  party  will  consist  of  Debenham,  Gran,  and  Forde; 
and  you  will  cross  the  Sound  on  or  about  October  .     [Date 

not  filled  in — G.  T.] 

You  will  depart  from  Butter  Point  with  provision  as  under : 
1 1  weeks'  pemmican, 
10  gallons  oil, 

1 8  weeks'  remainder  food  articles, 
25  lbs.  cooking  fat, 
and  make  along  the  coast  to  Granite  Harbour.  You  will  leave 
at  Butter  Point  2  weeks'  provision  for  your  party  for  use  in 
case  you  are  forced  to  retreat  along  the  coast  late  in  the  season, 
and  for  the  same  eventuality  you  will  depot  a  week's  provision 
at  Cape  Bernacchi. 

1  On  arrival  in  Granite  Harbour  you  will  choose  a  suitable 
place  to  depot  the  main  bulk  of  your  provision. 

'  As  the  commanding  officer  of  the  Terra  Nova  has  been 
referred  to  the  Bluff  Headland  shown  in  the  photograph  on 
page  154  "  Voyage  of  the  Discovery  "  as  the  place  near  which 
you  are  likely  to  be  found,  it  is  obviously  desirable  that  your 
depot  should  be  in  this  vicinity. 


SETTING    OUT  153 

1  I  approve  your  plan  to  employ  your  time  thereafter  ap- 
proximately as  follows: 

'  During  what  remains  of  the  first  fortnight  of  November  in 
exploring  north  of  Granite  Harbour. 

1  During  the  last  fortnight  of  November  in  exploring  south 
of  Granite  Harbour.' 

It  was  originally  intended  that  we  were  to  have  the  honour 
of  starting  the  '  long  trails  '  during  the  second  summer.  But 
owing  to  an  unfortunate  accident  Debenham  injured  his  knee, 
and  when  the  time  came  for  our  start  he  was  quite  unable  to 
leave  his  bunk.  The  motor  party  left  and  then  the  Pole  party. 
We  had  probably  a  month's  sledging  on  the  sea  ice  ahead  of  us 
— and  we  knew  that  the  ice  might  break  up  and  float  north  early 
in  December,  so  that  it  became  a  serious  question  how  long  I 
could  delay  the  start.  On  the  5th  Gran,  Forde,  and  I  pulled 
our  heavy  sledge  beyond  the  great  shear  crack  {2J/2  miles)  and 
left  it  there. 

On  November  7  Dr.  Simpson,  Debenham,  Nelson  and  myself 
held  a  council.  We  decided  that  Debenham  could  not  do  any- 
thing safely  for  a  week.  If  he  tried  to  hobble  along  his  leg 
would  never  improve  and  it  would  probably  lame  him  for  life. 
Nelson  very  kindly  volunteered  to  take  Debenham's  place  and 
help  us  across  to  Butter  Point  with  our  sledges.  Then  we  would 
return  by  Friday  night  when  we  trusted  to  find  Debenham  able 
to  start. 

We  pushed  off  at  9.45  with  the  small  sledge  and  in  about 
an  hour  picked  up  the  other  and  then  our  troubles  began.  We 
found  that  we  could  only  just  drag  the  two  along  at  the  rate  of 
about  one  mile  an  hour.  We  were  all  pretty  soft  after  the 
winter  and  as  usual  found  the  first  day  or  two  extra  special  hard 
work.  Crossing  the  thicker  snow  drifts  the  sledge  runners  stuck 
so  much  that  the  waist  belt  on  which  one  pulled  seemed  to  dis- 
locate one's  pelvis ! 

At  one  o'clock  we  were  only  4^  miles  from  the  hut.  As 
we  were  pitching  the  lunch  camp  the  drift  was  rising  rapidly 
and  before  we  could  get  the  tent  properly  fixed  a  blizzard  was 
upon  us.  Everything  was  soon  obliterated.  At  first  I  thought 
I  could  see  the  Western  Mountains  30  miles  away,  but  later 
found  out  that  I  was  gazing  at  a  snow  *  pressure  ridge  '  about 
ten  yards  off! 


154  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [November 

Let  us  look  round  the  tent  and  see  how  we  have  profited 
by  the  previous  season's  sledging.  In  the  roof  is  a  larger  venti- 
lator. This,  strangely  enough,  keeps  us  drier — for  the  steam 
from  the  cooker  escapes  instead  of  condensing  on  the  bags  and 
tent.  By  special  request  our  floor  cloth  is  eighteen  inches  wider, 
and  now  our  cameras  and  instruments  do  not  get  buried  in  snow 
as  heretofore.  But  greatest  blessing  of  all  is  an  ordinary  scrub- 
bing-brush. This  lies  just  inside  the  door  where  a  man  may 
reach  in  and  find  it — brush  himself  free  from  loose  snow  outside 
the  tent, — then  brush  his  boots  when  inside  the  tent  and  finally 
sweep  the  floor  cloth.  It  was  wonderful  what  a  difference  this 
made  to  our  comfort — for  previously  any  little  mass  of  snow  first 
melted  on  one's  body  or  bag  and  then  froze  into  a  cake  of  ice 
which  had  to  be  remelted  before  one  was  warm  enough  to  sleep. 

Our  chance  of  a  rapid  journey  to  Butter  Point  soon  became 
very  slender.  The  snow  drifted  nearly  to  the  peak  of  the  tent 
and  drove  in  the  windward  side  as  a  great  swelling  bulge.  The 
sledges  were  soon  covered  a  foot  deep.  There  we  lay  '  all  that 
day  '  and  read  and  talked  and  snoozed  till  7.30  next  morning. 

On  the  8th  we  had  done  over  3  miles  by  lunch  time  and 
could  see  the  cracks  in  the  glacier  of  Butter  Point  so  clearly  that 
it  seemed  only  five  miles  off.     But  it  was  a  long  twenty ! 

In  the  afternoon  we  did  three  more  stages  until  we  had  been 
on  the  go  for  eleven  hours.  Eight  miles  seemed  a  poor  result 
for  such  an  expenditure  of  energy. 

At  4  o'clock  on  Thursday  we  were  twenty-three  miles  from 
the  Hut.  It  was  gloomy  weather,  but  the  surface  had  not  been 
so  soft  and  we  still  hoped  to  reach  Butter  Point.  However  we 
saw  the  sky  darkening  to  south'ard.  Gradually  Minna  Bluff 
vanished,  then  Erebus  clouded  over,  Castle  Rock  disappeared 
and  we  knew  that  another  blizzard  was  upon  us. 

This  time  it  lasted  36  hours.  Early  on  Saturday  morning 
I  could  just  see  the  Western  Mountains.  The  drift  covered 
the  door  and  of  course  the  sledges  were  buried.  We  put  up 
a  depot  flag  and  started  back  at  4.30  A.M.  for  headquarters. 
We  had  now  only  the  sleeping-bags,  cooker,  tent  and  one  day's 
food.  But  owing  to  the  surface,  that  23  miles  was  stiff  going. 
I  thought  we  should  be  in  by  noon,  but  it  took  us  just  twelve 
hours  to  reach  the  dead  penguins  and  refuse  which  unavoidably 
characterise  the  vicinity  of  Cape  Evans. 


Q 
< 

o  < 


i9"]  THE    BLIZZARD  155 

I  note  that  we  immediately  rushed  the  cook,  and  that  the 
menu  consisted  of  soup,  rissoles  and  fruit  tart,  of  which  I  had 
three  extra  helps  and  still  felt  hungry! 

Debenham's  leg  had  not  improved  much,  but  we  decided  to 
start  with  him  on  Tuesday  (14th)  and  Nelson  (and  Anton) 
again  volunteered  to  help  us  along,  and  if  necessary  they  could 
fetch  Debenham  back. 

It  blizzed  till  3  P.M.  on  Tuesday.  We  could  then  just  see 
the  Western  Mountains  and  it  seemed  useless  to  wait  longer. 
There  was  a  great  barrier  of  stranded  bergs  off  the  Cape,  and 
in  the  lee  of  these  several  miles  of  clear  ice — swept  by  the  bliz- 
zards— appeared.  The  wind  blew  so  strongly  behind  us  that 
Debenham  was  able  to  ease  his  leg  by  sitting  on  the  sledge.  We 
managed  six  miles  before  night.  Next  day  we  were  half-way 
across  the  Sound.  On  Thursday  (16th)  it  was  very  thick. 
Large  '  Fluff-balls  '  of  snow  were  falling,  but  there  was  little 
wind.  I  felt  justified  in  pushing  off  and  trying  to  steer  by  the 
compass,  for  we  could  only  see  about  200  yards  ahead.  Deben- 
ham walked  behind  the  sledge  with  the  compass  as  near  S.  6$° 
(mag.)  as  he  could  keep  it.  Forde  and  Nelson  glanced  back 
to  see  his  signals,  and  I  tried  to  sight  bits  of  ice  pinnacle  in  our 
line  ahead.  It  was  eerie  work.  No  sound,  no  sight,  just  gray- 
white  mist  enveloping  us.  Behind,  Debenham's  black  figure — 
in  front  a  sheet  of  white  with  a  few  dark  patches,  which  might 
be  a  small  lump  of  ice  ten  yards  off  or  a  huge  pressure  ridge 
200  yards  away ! 

After  several  miles  of  this  blindfold  work,  we  were  wonder- 
ing how  we  were  getting  on — for  the  compass  is  by  no  means 
reliable  so  near  the  magnetic  pole.  Suddenly  we  realised 
Crusoe's  sensations  more  closely  than  ever  before.  We  were 
over  twenty  miles  from  the  hut  and  there  for  the  first  time  saw 
our  footprints  of  the  previous  week!  Nelson  offered  a  reward 
of  his  raisins  for  the  man  who  saw  the  depot  first  and  Anton 
soon  won  them.  We  reached  our  sledge  at  2  p.m.  and  all  six 
lunched  merrily  in  our  tent.  Anton  enlivened  the  meal  by  giv- 
ing us  a  Russian  groom's  opinions  on  marriage  in  very  broken 
English. 

The  passing  of  this  blizzard  was  a  beautiful  sight.  Gradu- 
ally the  solid  billows  of  gloomy  cloud  drifted  to  the  north,  leaving 
a  brilliant  blue  sky.     The  straight  edge  of  the  storm  nimbus 


156  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [November 

was  fringed  with  mackerel  cloud  as  if  a  great  grey  curtain 
were  being  drawn  away  from  the  glorious  snow-clad  mountains 
of  the  west. 

We  reached  Butter  Point  on  the  evening  of  the  17th.  About 
300  yards  up  the  snow  slope  is  the  depot  which  has  been  used 
by  all  the  Western  Parties  since  1903.  Here  we  found  the  boxes 
left  for  us  by  Captain  Scott  in  September.  We  dragged  up  the 
small  sledge  and  loaded  it  with  meal,  cocoa,  sugar,  and  pemmi- 
can.  Then  on  the  second  trip  we  dragged  down  330  lbs.  of 
biscuit. 

Then  we  had  a  busy  time  in  the  two  tents  opening  pemmican 
and  cocoa  tins  and  sorting  food.  When  Forde  and  Gran  re- 
packed the  two  sledges  we  had  over  1200  lbs.  to  drag  along. 

Load  of  the  Western  Geological  Party 

*  Tent '  sledge 50 

*  Biscuit '  sledge 50 

Boots,  stove,  crampons 40 

Sleeping-bags    (4) 50 

Personal  gear  (4) 60 

Tent,  cooker,  &c 35 


Theodolite 12 

Cameras  and  plates 30 

Repair  bag,  &c 5 

Geological  tools,  &c 15 

Shovel  and  ice  axes  (3) 16 

Food,  &c.  (14  weeks) ,  at  56  lbs.  a  week,  less 

4  weeks'  pemmican 744 

Oil 100 


285 


78 


844 


Total        1207 

In  face  of  the  difficulty  we  had  experienced  with  five  men  and 
a  less  load  I  knew  we  should  have  a  hard  task  when  Nelson  and 
Anton  left  us. 

We  left  Butter  Point  on  the  1 8th,  and  after  seeing  us  well 


i9ii]  RELAYING  157 

started  the  '  Convoy  Commando  '  exchanged  farewells.  We 
gave  them  three  cheers  and  Nelson  and  sturdy  little  Anton 
marched  steadily  across  to  Cape  Royds,  thirty  miles  away. 
Henceforth  for  over  three  months  we  were  left  to  our  own  de- 
vices. We  were  now  really  starting,  although  the  relaying  to 
date  had  almost  totalled  a  hundred  miles,  in  all  of  which  Nelson's 
assistance  had  been  invaluable. 

So  we  moved  off,  Debenham  linking  in;  for  to  our  great 
joy  his  leg  was  certainly  not  worse  for  its  drastic  treatment. 
The  sun  was  bright  and  we  wore  amber  or  green  glasses. 
Through  them  the  snow  looked  like  the  rippled  sand  at  the 
mouth  of  a  shallow  river.  Forde  turned  out  in  an  Antarctic 
Panama  with  a  brim  slightly  less  than  a  yard  wide.  Gran  and 
Debenham  had  felt  hats  with  ear  flaps.  I  just  tied  my  felt  hat 
down  a  la  coal  scuttle  until  it  was  too  cold,  and  then  we  had  to 
wear  our  '  balaclava  '  helmets. 

Now  we  started  a  fortnight's  relaying.  Weary  work  at  best, 
but  when  the  course  lies  on  sea  ice — which  may  go  out  any  day 
— and  your  retreat  is  barred  by  a  vertical  ice-barrier  thirty  feet 
high,  an  anxious  time  as  well. 

We  now  started  a  regular  routine  of  five  stages  a  day.  After 
breakfast  we  packed  the  sledges  and  left  the  *  biscuit '  sledge 
flagged  at  our  camp.  Then  pushed  on  about  a  mile  with  the 
'  tent '  sledge.  Flagged  that  and  tramped  back  to  the  other. 
Pulled  it  to  the  '  tent '  sledge  and  then  rested  five  minutes  and 
criticised  the  Antarctic  generally  and  the  snow  surface  more  par- 
ticularly! So  that  in  about  two  hours  we  had  shifted  our  half 
ton  a  whole  mile,  and  walked  three  in  doing  it.  Then  on  again 
for  another  mile  with  the  tent  sledge.  Here  we  pitched  the 
lunch  camp.  Debenham  boiled  the  tea  and  got  the  tent  fixed 
while  we  three  brought  up  the  lighter  biscuit  sledge.  In  the 
afternoon  we  managed  three  of  these  stages,  Debenham  as  be- 
fore having  the  tent  ready  when  we  brought  in  the  last  sledge. 

On  November  20  we  reached  Cape  Bernacchi.  It  was  an 
awful  surface.  We  crossed  a  layer  of  loose  ice  crystals  in  which 
one  sometimes  sank  to  the  knee.  Debenham's  knee  got  a  very 
painful  wrench  so  that  he  could  do  no  relaying.  However,  he 
started  the  plane  table  survey  which  he  carried  on  throughout 
the  whole  journey — thus  producing  by  far  the  most  detailed 
sledge  map  of  any  part  of  Victoria  Land. 


158  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [November 

We  left  a  depot  of  one  week's  stores  here,  as  ordered  by 
Captain  Scott.  We  stuck  a  bright  tin  on  the  pole  (as  well  as 
the  flag)  which  shows  up  well  when  the  sun  is  bright. 

The  outlook  was  not  promising.  Ahead  of  us  was  a  wide 
bay  filled  with  screw-pack.  This  is  sea  ice  which  has  been  jammed 
haphazard  on  to  the  coast.  Many  of  the  upturned  blocks  were 
eight  feet  high.  Snow  had  fallen  on  this  surface  and  filled  in 
some  of  the  hollows,  and  a  more  inviting  man-trap  or  leg- 
breaker  it  would  be  difficult  to  imagine.  However,  by  next  day's 
noon  we  were  through  the  worst  of  it.  It  was  such  hurried,  tiring 
work  that  we  had  no  leisure  for  photography.  There  was  a 
quaint  spoor  standing  up  in  relief  two  inches  above  the  snow 
and  made  by  an  Emperor  penguin,  of  which  I  should  have  much 
liked  a  stereo-photo. 

On  the  2  ist  we  came  up  to  an  old  friend.  Nearly  filling 
a  small  bay  was  a  giant  berg  about  two  miles  long  with  a  black 
spot  near  the  north-east  corner.  This  was  the  end  of  Glacier 
Tongue  which  had  broken  away  on  March  i  in  the  big  gale 
and  settled  down  fifty  miles  or  so  away  on  the  other  side  of 
the  Sound. 

The  fodder  depot  had  been  left  on  the  Tongue  by  Oates  in 
January  and  served  as  a  useful  survey  mark.  Our  best  route 
lay  within  this  mass  of  transported  ice.  It  was  a  good  omen 
that  there  were  some  twenty  seals  basking  off  the  cape,  for  we 
knew  we  should  have  to  live  largely  on  seal  meat  during  our 
stay  at  Granite  Harbour. 

As  we  pulled  under  the  thirty-foot  ice  cliffs  of  the  broken 
Tongue  we  could  see  remarkable  snow  folds  apparent  in  some 
fresh  sections — which  tend  to  show  that  much  of  it  had  grown 
in  situ  (in  its  former  position)  from  snow  cornices  and  drift 
rather  than  from  mainland  ice. 

The  mainland  shore  was  now  almost  wholly  covered  by  the 
southern  portion  of  the  huge  piedmont  glacier  which  extends 
in  an  unbroken  '  Chinese  Wall '  of  ice  to  Granite  Harbour.  It 
was  an  imposing  sight  and  an  ugly  one  to  a  sledging  party 
travelling  over  the  sea  ice — for  as  one  moves  north  there  are 
fewer  and  fewer  places  where  it  can  be  ascended,  and  its  thirty- 
foot  barrier  affords  a  poor  lee  in  time  of  trouble.  This  piedmont 
was  moulded  over  hill  and  dale  in  an  alternation  of  icy  dimples 
and  pimples,  but  several  rounded  domes  and  ridges  projected  as 


w  3 

W    Q 


_._J 


i9ii]  OUR    ICE-YACHT  159 

Nunatakker — or  Nunakoller  as  I  prefer  to  term  these  smoothed 
rock  outcrops,  for  tak  means  a  peak. 

The  next  morning  (22nd)  we  had  to  cross  a  bay  about 
six  miles  wide.  As  we  lugged  our  heavy  sledge  close  to  the 
numerous  seals  they  would  raise  their  heads  and  gaze  super- 
ciliously at  us,  then  roll  over  on  the  other  side  and  go  off  to 
sleep  again;    no  doubt  much  preferring  their  own  lot  in  life. 

Returning  from  the  first  trip  we  felt  a  strong  southerly  wind. 
I  decided  to  try  our  sail  as  the  wind  was  dead  behind  us  and 
as  there  was  no  drift. 

Forde  superintended  the  rigging  of  our  ice-yacht.  The  mast 
consisted  of  four  of  the  tent  poles,  the  other  two  going  across 
and  forming  yards.  The  leather  '  bucket '  uniting  the  poles 
formed  a  sort  of  pulley  over  which  the  main  halyard  was 
passed.  Two  sheets  to  the  poop  (as  I  suppose  the  rear  of  the 
sledge  yacht  should  be  called)  kept  the  sail  steady.  These  terms 
are  probably  not  used  in  their  strict  nautical  sense ! 

We  had  a  great  job  to  start  the  two  sledges — for  as  usual 
after  waiting  a  short  time  the  runners  froze  to  the  surface. 
However  Debenham  *  broke  her  out,'  the  sail  filled,  and  when 
we  once  got  going  we  found  the  half  ton  quite  manageable. 

We  felt  we  were  progressing  at  racing  speed  when  we  accom- 
plished a  mile  in  forty-five  minutes  with  both  sledges,  which 
before  had  taken  two  hours.  But  needless  to  say  we  had  to 
pull  with  all  our  strength  at  the  same  time,  though  the  wind 
must  have  almost  accounted  for  one  of  the  sledges.  The  miles 
piled  up  and  we  did  6y2  geographical  miles  by  7  p.m.,  instead 
of  \Y2  by  9  P.M.  as  heretofore. 

Between  two  bergs  we  had  to  cross  a  '  working '  crack 
several  feet  wide.  We  were  much  amused  at  the  efforts  of  a 
young  seal  which  was  baaing  loudly  and  trying  to  climb  a 
huge  mountain  eight  inches  high ! 

We  reached  Dunlop  Island  at  noon  the  next  day  helped  by 
the  wind  and  sail.  There  was  a  strait  about  quarter  of  a  mile 
wide  separating  it  from  the  mainland  cape.  This  strait  con- 
sisted of  blue  glassy  ice  covered  in  narrow  belts  by  thin  wettish 
salty  snow.  This  next  mile  led  to  the  worst  language  I  think 
I  heard  on  any  sledge  journey!  My  journal  states:  '  The  wind 
drove  the  whole  1200  lbs.  across  the  ice,  while  our  combined 
efforts,  almost  bursting  blood  vessels,  were  needed  to  cross  five 


l6o  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [November 

yards  of  the  thin  snow.  When  we  were  on  the  snow — where 
you  could  grip — the  sledge  was  on  ice  and  needed  no  pulling. 
When  we  were  on  ice  the  sledge  was  on  detestable  sticky  stuff 
and  wouldn't  budge.  We  had  a  merry  time  and  cursed  the  glassy 
ice  and  its  mate.' 

From  Dunlop  Island  as  far  north  as  we  could  see  stretched 
an  icy  barrier,  the  furthest  visible  promontory  of  the  piedmont 
being  almost  due  north,  though  the  maps  of  this  coast  showed 
a  well-marked  bend  to  the  west. 

Unfortunately  the  wind  changed  in  direction,  and  after  it 
had  nearly  blown  the  sledge  over  I  decided  to  '  down  sail '  and 
steer  nearer  the  coast. 

We  reached  a  spot  where  it  was  possible  to  climb  up  the  ice. 
Here  by  the  tide  crack  we  pitched  our  tent.  Gran  and  I  climbed 
up  200  feet,  crossing  a  few  rather  large  crevasses.  We  could 
see  no  open  water  within  ten  miles. 

On  the  24th  we  got  off  at  9.30.  I  decided  to  try  one  sledge 
first  and  tack  on  the  other  if  all  went  well.  There  was  no  wind 
and  it  was  very  hot.  We  could  only  just  drag  one  sledge  along 
and  had  only  managed  to  get  a  mile  northward  by  1  p.m. 
Debenham  had  wrenched  his  knee,  I  sprained  a  leg  muscle, 
and  our  progress  was  practically  nil.  So  I  decided  to  pitch  the 
tent  and  go  in  for  night  marching  when  the  temperature  would 
be  below  freezing-point  and  the  surface  harden  a  little.  A  queer 
state  of  affairs !  I  wrote :  '  It  was  too  hot  to  keep  inside  the 
sleeping-bags  so  I  lay  outside  without  a  coat,  in  one  pair  of 
socks  and  finneskoes  till  about  6 — when  Praise  Be  it  got  cooler !  ' 

Night  marching  commenced  about  9  p.m.  The  surface  was 
much  better  and  as  usual  was  best  when  a  sort  of  '  pancake 
patchwork  '  of  ice  projected  above  the  soft  snow.  We  were 
never  able  to  use  the  sail  again  and  had  to  relay  practically  all 
the  remainder  of  our  journey. 

To  the  east  appeared  a  brown  island  about  100  feet  high 
and  a  quarter  of  a  mile  long.  We  hoped  this  had  been  missed 
by  previous  explorers,  and  while  Debenham  and  I  took  angles 
with  the  plane  table  and  theodolite  the  other  two  made  a  detour 
to  examine  our  '  find.'  Unfortunately  it  turned  out  to  be  a 
1  silt-berg  ' — a  mass  of  ice  filled  with  mud  and  moraine  material. 
Many  of  the  '  doubtful  islands  '  marked  on  Polar  charts  no 
doubt  originated  in  the  same  way. 


i9ii]  HARD    PULLING  161 

We  had  so  far  had  neither  time  nor  opportunity  to  examine 
the  geology  of  the  coast  we  were  skirting.  It  was  apparent 
also  that  as  we  proceeded  northwards  the  glaciers  had  retreated 
less,  and  except  on  the  capes  no  rock  was  exposed.  From  our 
low  position  we  could  only  see  the  summits  of  the  '  facetted  ' 
walls  marking  the  three  great  valley  glaciers  which  opened  into 
the  Piedmont  Glacier.  Far  away  to  the  east,  Erebus  was  throw- 
ing a  huge  steam  banner  to  the  south.  Later  in  the  evening, 
after  some  premonitory  puffs,  the  banner  shifted  to  the 
north.  We  now  had  an  imposing  view  of  the  great  black  '  fang  ' 
of  the  old  crater  wall,  and  just  behind  this  the  lower  dark 
dome  of  Terror  contrasted  strongly  with  its  snow-covered  rival 
Erebus. 

It  was  very  warm  in  the  tent  (though  the  air  temperature 
outside  was  only  +  !80)  and  owing  to  the  sun  effect  on  the 
dark  tent  water  lay  in  little  pools  on  the  cloth  valance.  Luckily 
this  altered  before  we  started,  or  the  surface  would  have  rivalled 
seccotine !  I  finished  my  day's  notes  with  the  remark:  '  I  don't 
take  very  full  geological  notes  for  obvious  reasons — we  only  see 
a  piece  of  rock  about  every  three  days !  ' 

I  will  copy  some  notes  I  made  on  our  sledge  routine  at  this 
time.  '  Our  first  movement,  when  we  try  to  take  1 200  lbs.  at 
one  fell  swoop,  is  to  "  break  out  "  the  sledges,  so  as  to  free 
the  runners  from  ice.  Then  I  give  a  Hipp !  cautioning  Deben- 
ham  not  to  strain  hard,  and  the  runners  come  away  grudgingly 
and  you  feel  as  if  they  were  pulling  you  asunder.  Once  under 
way  they  improve  and  we  can  do  as  much  as  three-quarters  of 
a  mile  in  an  hour,  while  the  sweat  rolls  off  us,  groans  rend  the 
air,  and  Forde  curses  audibly!  Gran  slips  about  on  the  ice  and 
nearly  kicks  out  Forde's  patella.  I  get  up  steam  too  much  on 
easy  ground  till  I  hear  Forde  out  of  time.  We  come  to  an  ice 
ridge  and  there's  bound  to  be  soft  snow  just  beyond.  You  step 
into  this  just  as  the  sledges  start  up  the  little  slope,  slip  down 
nearly  to  the  knee,  flounder  about,  and  the  whole  caravan  stops ! 
So  twisted  I  my  right  leg  and  it  twinges  all  the  time,  while  Gran 
diagnoses  burst  veins  with  great  gusto.  .  .  .'  How  Debenham 
got  through  with  his  disabled  knee  I  don't  know.  We  used  to 
yell  out  '  Crack  '  as  Gran  and  I  stepped  into  them  first,  and  so 
he  managed  to  keep  out  of  some,  but  he  suffered  some  awful 
wrenches  with  gallant  fortitude. 

VOL.   II — II 


1 62  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [November 

On  Sunday  the  26th  we  camped  amid  a  cluster  of  icebergs 
not  far  from  a  low  rocky  cape. 

It  was  very  heavy  pulling  through  the  snow  which  had 
collected  around  the  bergs.  As  we  reached  the  screw  pack  at 
the  cape  I  wished  to  photograph  the  great  cubes  of  sea  ice  thrown 
20  feet  up  on  to  the  rocks  by  previous  gales.  Gran  went  ahead, 
and  almost  immediately  cried  out  that  Granite  Harbour  was  in 
sight.  I  hastily  climbed  up  through  the  granite  blocks  and  there 
it  was;  we  were  right  at  it!  This  was  Cape  Roberts,  and  it 
formed  the  south  extremity  of  the  outer  part  of  the  harbour. 
We  had  arrived  three  days  sooner  than  the  coast  charts  had  led 
us  to  expect,  and  who  so  joyful  as  we! 

Looking  north-west  we  could  see  a  large  and  deep  bay, 
some  ten  miles  across,  very  like  New  Harbour  in  appearance. 
It  contained  two  inner  fiord  valleys — of  which  the  southern  is 
occupied  by  the  Mackay  Glacier  and  is  much  the  larger.  I  took 
several  panorama  photos  with  Forde  in  the  foreground  collect- 
ing skua  eggs.  Or  rather  trying  to,  for  they  had  not  laid  any 
yet,  though  many  pairs  were  evidently  considering  the  subject. 
Their  nests — mere  hollows  two  inches  deep  in  the  gravel — were 
ready,  but  they  merely  sat  about  on  cold  feet,  and  stretched 
their  wings  and  squawked  at  us. 

There  was  a  low  snow-covered  col  across  the  cape  and  Forde 
found  a  feasible  track  over  it  which  thus  avoided  the  rough 
screw-pack  off  the  cape.  So  I  agreed  to  try  an  '  overland  '  route 
with  the  sledges. 

Now  arose  an  interesting  question.  Where  was  the  Rendez- 
vous Bluff  photographed  on  page  154  in  the  'Voyage  of  the 
Discovery  }  ?  After  lunch — a  midnight  feast  as  we  were  now 
marching — we  inspanned  and  made  straight  for  a  hanging  gla- 
cieret  we  named  the  *  Spill-over.'  We  did  a  long  march  to  '  see 
round  the  corner.'  We  crossed  several  working  cracks  and 
reached  a  small  knob  of  granite  beneath  frowning  ice  cliffs. 
About  here  a  huge  bluff  rose  into  view  which  we  decided  must 
be  the  Discovery  Bluff.  It  looked  rather  higher  than  500  feet 
and  we  saw  it  from  another  angle,  but  no  other  headland  seemed 
at  all  similar.  I  wondered  if  we  were  in  some  other  bay  alto- 
gether, for  it  differed  considerably  from  the  Discovery  position. 
We  returned  from  First  View  Point  for  our  other  sledge.  On 
our  second  trip  it  seemed  as  if  we  would  never  reach  the  Point, 


*ta 


: 


'  OVERLAND    OVER    CAPE    ROBERTS  '    TO    AVOID    THE    SCREW-PACK 

The  sledge  has  just  crossed  the  tide  crack,  here  twenty  feet  wide,  between  the  sea-ice  and  the  land-ice 


[See  p.  250 
HEAVY   SLEDGING   IN    NEW   SNOW    OFF   POINT   DISAPPOINTMENT 


i9ii]  OUR    MENU  163 

for  in  our  eagerness  we  had  done  a  two-mile  stage.  The 
weather  looked  thick  to  south'ard  and  there  was  a  threatening 
tablecloth  on  Erebus.  We  hauled  the  sledges  over  some  wide 
tide  cracks  and  bumpy  ice  and  put  up  the  tent  in  a  little  alcove. 
Here  there  was  not  room  to  spread  the  poles  properly,  so  the 
tent  napped  under  the  blizzard.  We  were  safe  however  on  fixed 
ice  for  the  first  time  for  days,  even  if  it  was  only  a  yard  or 
so  wide ! 

On  leaving  View  Point  we  proceeded  due  west  up  the  south 
side  of  Granite  Harbour.  We  saw  ahead  of  us  an  ice  tongue 
projecting  into  the  bay  ice.  We  had  to  cross  a  nasty  tide  crack 
quite  twenty  feet  wide,  but  luckily  only  a  foot  or  two  in  the 
middle  was  of  pulpy  ice.  Very  heavy  clouds  rolled  up  from 
the  south  and  it  started  to  snow,  so  I  decided  to  camp  in  the  lee 
of  the  tongue.  We  made  a  good  pitch  on  the  ice  with  splendid 
snow  blocks  for  the  carving  from  a  big  drift  alongside. 

Dates  and  meals  were  rather  hard  to  adjust  at  this  time. 
Midnight  would  be  in  the  middle  of  a  march,  and  supper  would 
be  celebrated  at  8  A.M.  However,  as  night  marching  was  no 
good  for  surveying,  I  decided  to  go  back  to  day  work  now  we 
were  inside  the  Harbour.  An  opportune  blizzard  kept  us  to  the 
tent  long  enough  to  enable  us  to  straighten  out  the  calendar ! 

It  continued  to  snow.  We  cut  out  breakfast  and  kept  com- 
fortably to  our  bags  all  morning.  We  had  lunch  normally  at 
1.30.  Our  last  meal  had  been  a  lunch  (at  midnight)  and  Gran 
caused  some  amusement  by  demanding  the  chocolate  for  the 
missed  meal.  During  this  blizzard  I  was  cook,  and  trying  to 
increase  my  culinary  skill  I  wrote  down  full  notes  of  our  menu. 

Breakfast. — Pemmican  (looking  like  lumps  of  block  choco- 
late) is  put  into  the  aluminium  cup  to  full  measure.  Meanwhile 
enough  snow  or  ice  has  been  melted  in  the  cooker  to  cover  the 
bowl  of  a  spoon.  The  pemmican  is  added  to  this.  Some  water 
is  taken  out  in  another  cup  and  the  '  thickers  '  stirred  up  in  it. 
The  latter  consists  of  three  spoonsful  of  wheat  meal  or  peaflour, 
with  salt  and  pepper  to  taste.  Debenham  had  a  happy  knack 
with  the  ( thickers  '  which  made  the  hoosh  slip  down  in  a  most 
comforting  and  glutinous  way.  I  tried  boiling  hard  and  mixing 
soft  and  vice  versa,  but  finally  discovered  that  the  art  consisted 
in  dropping  the  '  thickers  '  in  just  as  the  hoosh  boiled  and 
pouring  it  out  '  good  and  quick.'     About  twenty  minutes  over 


1 64  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [November 

the  primus  cooked  the  pemmican  hoosh.  Then  cocoa  (or  tea) 
is  made  by  pouring  water  from  the  outer  cooker  into  the  inner 
cooker,  where  a  flavour  of  pemmican  is  superadded  to  it.  I 
liked  cocoa  best  for  marching,  the  others  preferred  tea,  so  we 
had  alternate  days,  though  the  sledging  law  says  '  cocoa.' 

With  regard  to  biscuits  we  were  in  two  camps.  At  Shackle- 
ton's  depot  we  found  a  cache  of  ordinary  biscuits  and  Debenham 
preferred  these,  so  I  agreed  to  take  a  small  tin  along  in  lieu 
of  an  equal  weight  of  sledging  biscuits.  So  that  Gran  and  I 
had  two  sledge  biscuits  each  while  the  '  soft-teeth  '  ate  Shackle- 
ton's  brand.  Forde  dropped  a  cake  of  chocolate  in  his  cocoa. 
Nous  autres  preferred  to  eat  it  at  lunch. 

Lunch. — We  always  had  tea;  Gran  and  I  liked  it  weaker 
and  the  other  two  had  the  last  pannikins  full.  Six  lumps  of 
sugar  per  man  were  served  out,  and  as  many  raisins  as  you 
could  carry  out  of  the  bag  in  your  spoon.  (N.B. — It  had  to  be 
a  dry  spoon.)  Butter  was  whacked  out  if  you  hadn't  had  it 
already.  I  made  mine  last  lunch  and  supper  by  putting  a  bit 
by,  though  sometimes  the  bit  vanished  under  the  hot  hoosh  if 
I  forgot  to  take  it  out  of  the  pannikin.  Three  biscuits  each  and 
a  cake  of  chocolate. 

Supper. — Cocoa  follows  hoosh.  We  have  two  biscuits  and 
a  cake  of  chocolate.  One  spoon  was  used  in  our  camp  for 
measuring,  stirring,  tasting,  eating  soup  and  tea,  &c. — all  alter- 
nating gaily  as  different  operations  employ  the  cook.  I  believe 
other  camps  followed  the  rule,  '  One  man — one  spoon — one  cup,' 
but  we  were  strictly  socialistic.  If  your  tea  or  hoosh  was  too  hot 
you  stood  it  on  the  floor.  If  you  didn't  watch  it,  it  might  melt 
its  way  out  of  sight — but  that  was  a  most  infrequent  incident. 
'  Shut-eye  '  was  played  to  ensure  fair  division;  the  cook  pointing 
to  the  fragments  of  chocolate  or  butter  and  the  blind  person 
giving  one  of  our  names.  The  cook  has  to  share  out  food, 
stir  the  hoosh,  watch  the  primus  and  generally  hop  around; 
so  that  he  has  a  busy  time.  This  doesn't  matter  except  at  sup- 
per, when  he  doesn't  get  his  feet  warm  in  dry  socks  as  soon  as 
the  others. 

When  the  snow  stopped  Gran  and  I  walked  to  the  root  of 
the  ice  tongue  and  climbed  up  the  granite  cliffs  to  the  west  of  it. 
On  the  top  we  found  a  bare  plateau  300  yards  wide  on  which 
were  some  large  lichens  and  a  small  patch  of  true  moss,  quite 


i9n]  DISCOVERY   BLUFF  165 

perky  at  +  150  and  evidently  prepared  to  grow  vigorously  if 
permitted.  The  Tongue  was  a  mile  long  and  exhibited  the  usual 
regular  waves  in  its  profile. 

On  the  next  day  we  continued  west.  The  clear  sheet  of  ice 
we  had  seen  ahead  of  us  was  now  covered  with  snow  and  our 
hopes  of  easy  sledging  were  not  fulfilled.  At  lunch  time  the 
sun  was  so  hot  that  the  surface  was  not  traversable:  We  halted 
therefore  and  Gran  and  I  walked  south  to  a  small  bay. 

There  was  a  wonderful  granite  cliff  with  overhanging  glacier 
streams  connecting  the  upper  ice  with  the  lower.  Probably  not 
long  ago  a  continuous  ice  sheet  covered  this  150-foot  cliff,  but 
now  only  comparatively  narrow  ribbons  of  ice  are  left,  though 
these  are  quite  continuous  in  spite  of  the  steep  fall.  They  were 
however  in  an  unstable  position  and  we  heard  several  avalanches 
— hence  our  name  for  it  of  Avalanche  Bay.  Just  to  the  east 
of  these  '  ice-ribbons  '  was  a  rock  outcrop  which  seemed  to  me 
the  first  spot  in  the  harbour  whence  the  top  of  the  piedmont  ice 
could  be  reached  if  the  bay  ice  went  out. 

After  supper  we  pulled  on  towards  the  Discovery  Bluff. 
The  surface  improved  somewhat  and  we  started  out  for  more 
relay  work.  We  could  see  Discovery  Bluff  quite  close — and 
after  half  a  mile  I  judged  we  were  half-way  and  went  back  for 
the  second  sledge.  Then  on  again  and  it  never  seemed  to  get 
any  nearer.  Instead  of  half  a  mile  it  was  two  miles.  Bring- 
ing up  the  second  sledge  was  a  weary  grind.  As  Debenham  said 
when  we  arrived,  *  We  were  too  tired  to  think !  '  We  got  in 
about  midnight  and  pitched  camp  on  the  tide  crack.  There 
was  a  young  seal — still  in  its  woolly  coat — lamenting  its  mother's 
absence  with  great  persistence.  '  Baa~aa !  '  it  said  like  a  cross 
between  a  lamb  and  a  very  vigorous  young  bull.  This  resounded 
from  the  granite  cliff  above  us — and  occasionally  the  mother 
re-echoed  it  from  the  tide  crack,  where  she  wisely  kept.  I 
was  glad  to  see  eight  seals  here — most  of  which  I  intended 
to  kill.  Gran  caught  the  young  one  by  the  tail,  which  in- 
creased the  bellows  of  anguish.  It  then  bolted  to  the  water, 
in  which  it  swam  readily,  and  we  turned  in  amid  a  chorus  from 
the  seals. 

On  the  30th  we  journeyed  on  round  the  steep  face  of  the 
Discovery  Bluff  and  opened  up  a  fine  little  bay  with  a  regular 
beach  of  granite  boulders.     Here  was  much  lichen  and  lots  of 


I  66  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [November 

4  knobs  '  of  dried-up  moss.  I  climbed  up  a  few  hundred  feet 
and  got  a  good  view  to  the  south-west,  where  a  beautiful  glacier 
came  into  the  harbour  at  such  a  low  angle  it  seemed  to  offer 
a  feasible  route  to  the  hinterland.  Debenham  had  discovered 
a  nice  patch  of  gravel  and  a  suitable  site  for  our  stone  kitchen, 
so  we  decided  to  make  our  headquarters  on  this  point  which  we 
christened  Cape  Geology.  The  beach,  in  honour  of  our  country 
and  of  the  mossy  verdure,  and  in  memory  of  our  isolation,  we 
named  Botany  Bay! 

We  had  lunch  about  3  p.m.  and  then  we  marched  off  to  get 
the  wherewithal  for  our  first  seal-hoosh.  A  seal  lay  only  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  west  of  the  camp.  I  poleaxed  her  with  an  ice 
axe  and  we  cut  her  up  under  Forde's  direction.  Forde's  right 
hand  was  still  in  bandages  from  the  serious  frostbite  of  Sep- 
tember and,  indeed,  his  third  finger  had  not  recovered  by  the 
end  of  our  expedition. 

It  was  rather  a  sanguinary  business,  especially  for  tyros. 
Gran  fairly  paddled  in  blood,  and  I  fear  I  was  little  better. 
We  took  all  the  meat  we  could  carry  and  Debenham  had  about 
40  lbs.  of  blubber. 

By  this  time  about  a  dozen  skuas  had  assembled.  We  did 
not  frighten  them,  for  we  wished  to  attract  as  many  as  possible 
and  later  abstract  their  eggs.  I  wrote :  '  About  six  pairs  are 
breeding  along  the  beach  here,  so  we  ought  to  get  a  dozen  "  new 
laid,"  and  save  them  a  world  of  trouble  by  killing  them  also.' 
(I'm  afraid  we  were  not  very  altruistic!) 

Now  we  set  to  work  at  our  stone  kitchen.  All  the  way  from 
Cape  Evans  we  had  dragged  a  blubber  stove  strongly  made  in 
sheet  iron  by  Bernard  Day.  The  granite  hereabouts  weathered 
in  long  joints  and  we  found  a  natural  hollow  about  a  yard  wide 
and  3  yards  long.  The  lower  walls  of  the  hut  were  therefore 
of  solid  granite  about  fifteen  feet  thick — which  should  ensure 
freedom  from  draughts.  We  broke  out  blocks  from  the  floor 
and  Gran  smashed  off  a  troublesome  projection  by  repeatedly 
dropping  a  boulder  weighing  a  hundredweight  upon  it  until  it 
decided  to  cave  in. 

At  10  p.m.  I  made  a  great  discovery.  I  saw  something  black 
floating  in  a  little  pool,  and  closer  inspection  revealed  a  cluster 
of  minute  insects.  The  others  had  almost  dropped  to  sleep  and 
I  was  much  chagrined  at  the  lukewarm  reception  of  my  news. 


GRANITE    HUT,    CAPE    GEOLOGY 

Forde  and  Gran  are  cooking  at  the  blubber  stove,  whose  chimney  projects  behind 

the  '  sledge  '  roof- tree 


[See  p.  277 
FORDE    COOKING   SEAL-FRY   ON   THE   BLUBBER   STOVE   AT   CAPE   ROBERTS 


i9"l  A   BIRTHDAY    FEAST  167 

'They'll  keep  till  to-morrow,  won't  they?'  was  the  tenor  of 
their  remarks. 

Hitherto  only  a  few  odd  legs  and  tails  in  some  moss  had 
been  recorded  for  the  Insecta  from  77  °  South.  Later  Deben- 
ham  found  there  were  lots  under  many  of  the  pebbles.  Here 
they  clustered  in  a  film  of  ice.  As  one  turned  a  pebble  to  the 
sun  they  would  thaw  out  and  crawl  around  for  exercise.  I  got 
a  brush  out  of  the  medical  chest  and  spread  a  sheet  of  paper 
with  seccotine.  Then  brushed  them  off  carefully  on  to  the  paper 
and  so  embalmed  several  thousand.  We  also  got  a  few  lively 
little  beggars  about  one  quarter  the  size  of  the  big  blue  ones. 
The  latter  were  nearly  one  millimetre  long. 

The  first  of  December  was  my  birthday,  and  I  received 
congratulations.  We  ran  up  the  sledge  flags  and  our  black  and 
red  depot  flags  in  honour  of  our  arrival  at  our  rendezvous. 
Debenham  said  he  couldn't  let  me  cook  on  my  birthday  and 
kindly  offered  to  prepare  the  festive  board.  Meanwhile  Gran, 
Forde,  and  I  brought  in  our  other  sledge  from  two  miles  back. 

Gran  presented  me  with  a  bottle  of  prunes  and  one  of  Savoy 
sauce,  which  he  had  lugged  along  from  the  hut  in  his  personal 
gear: — a  present  only  to  be  fully  appreciated  by  those  whose 
menu  was  as  limited  as  ours. 

About  5.30  a  long  streamer  of  smoke  announced  that  the 
famous  stove  was  going,  and  Debenham  produced  a  splendid 
liver  fry,  followed  by  cocoa  in  very  quick  time.  '  I  could  have 
eaten  two  whacks  of  the  fry  easily.'  After  we  were  snugly  in 
our  bags  in  the  tent,  I  divided  off  half  a  box  of  fancy  chocolates. 
These  were  provided  by  Fry's  for  just  such  a  contingency,  and 
we  passed  a  resolution  that  the  leader  should  write  and  thank 
Fry's  for  their  gift;  for  crunching  those  elaborate  chocolates 
brought  one  nearer  to  civilisation  than  anything  we  experienced 
sledging. 

Next  day  was  spent  in  getting  meat  from  another  seal  and 
in  finishing  the  hut  walls.  From  our  rate  of  consumption  I 
reckoned  that  one  seal  would  give  us  2^  meals  of  liver,  and 
ten  meals  of  meat,  while  his  blubber  would  cook  about  30 
meals. 

Debenham  and  I  flensed  the  seal-skin  on  a  block  of  ice. 
This  consisted  in  removing  the  white  tallowy  two-inch  layer  of 
blubber  from  the  outer  leather  with  sharp  knives.     It  was  rather 


1 68  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [December 

a  troublesome  task  in  which  we  were  not  assisted  by  the  numer- 
ous skua  gulls  which  surrounded  us.  This  skin  was  one  of  three 
we  required  for  the  roof  of  the  stone  hut. 

Gran  and  Forde  worked  very  energetically  on  the  latter. 
Gran  was  so  keen  at  lifting  huge  blocks  of  granite  that  I  had 
to  caution  him  against  straining  his  back.  We  used  a  sledge 
for  the  roof  tree,  and  sewed  the  skins  together  and  then  pulled 
them  taut  by  heavy  stones  hung  round  the  edges.  Finally  the 
hut  looked  quite  snug  with  the  smoke  pouring  out  of  the  chimney 
(and  also  it  must  be  confessed  out  of  the  front),  and  the  tout 
ensemble  was  Very  like  an  Irish  shebeen  in  Forde's  opinion. 
Gran  was  reading  Jules  Verne's  '  Mysterious  Island  '  this  trip, 
so  we  named  our  sample  of  Polar  architecture  '  Granite  House  ' 
from  that  exciting  melodrama. 

On  the  3rd  Gran  and  I  set  about  placing  a  letter  on  the 
Rendezvous  Bluff  as  Captain  Scott  instructed  me.  We  climbed 
up  one  of  the  big  couloirs  about  500  feet  and  then  got  on  to  a 
projecting  spur,  where  we  fixed  a  stout  bamboo  pole  in  a  crack 
3  feet  deep  in  the  granite— which  just  admitted  the  staff.  I  left 
a  letter  for  Pennell  as  to  our  depot.  We  then  hurried  down  the 
cliff  and  went  out  to  slay  another  seal.  We  had  a  difficult  time 
trying  to  pack  the  hide,  blubber,  and  liver  on  the  sledge.  The 
rounded  portions  ran  about  all  over  the  sledge.  Gran  swears 
they  worked  their  way  up  hill  and  came  out  of  the  folds  of 
skin  in  which  we  tied  them.  I  threw  some  bits  of  meat  into 
the  '  shear  crack  '  while  washing  the  liver,  and  the  water  was 
soon  full  of  amphipods.  These  are  humble  relations  of  the 
shrimps,  and  Gran  declared  his  intention  of  trying  for  bigger 
'  fish  '  here  if  he  could  make  a  hook.  However,  we  never  had 
time  to  test  this  food  supply. 

On  the  4th  I  decided  to  climb  the  Bluff.  First  we  skirted 
low  cliffs,  below  which  were  large  '  joint-channels  '  in  the  granite 
with  carpets  of  thick  fungus-like  moss.  These  were  green  under- 
neath, but  the  tufts  were  still  black,  contracted  and  dryish.  Then 
over  crags  to  a  slope  of  talus  debris  in  which  I  found  a  large 
frondose  lichen  about  8  inches  across  with  well-developed 
branches  and  pseudo-roots.  We  got  to  the  top  in  an  hour,  and 
our  doubts  as  to  the  height  were  justified.  The  Rendezvous 
Bluff  was  sixteen  hundred  feet  high  instead  of  500  as  we 
expected ! 


I9H]  MOUNT    SUESS  169 

We  got  a  magnificent  view  of  Granite  Harbour  and  its 
hinterland. 

Far  to  the  east  Erebus  was  wholly  visible,  while  to  the  west 
we  could  see  the  great  ice  plateau.  Right  out  to  sea  was  Beau- 
fort Island,  and  there  was  no  open  water  near  the  harbour. 
Closer  was  the  cluster  of  fifteen  bergs  near  Cape  Roberts  and 
the  small  tongue  of  ice  where  we  had  camped  during  the  blizzard. 
But  a  most  amazing  discovery  was  that  the  whole  inner  part  of 
the  harbour  was  occupied  by  a  great  glacier  tongue  some  five 
miles  long  and  a  mile  wide.  This  projected  out  to  sea  from 
the  Mackay  icefalls  and  ended  in  three  splay  '  fingers.'  It  was 
a  hundred  feet  above  the  sea  ice  and  crevassed  beyond  descrip- 
tion for  the  greater  part  of  its  length. 

Across  the  harbour  was  a  low  plateau  about  1000  feet  above 
the  sea,  formed  of  black  dolerite.  Small  glaciers  hung  over  the 
steep  cliffs,  one  being  the  '  Spillover '  mentioned  previously. 
Then  looking  west  came  the  crevasses  of  the  Mackay  icefalls, 
as  impassable  and  impossible  as  Dr.  Wilson  had  described  them. 
But  in  the  south-west  corner  was  the  smaller  New  Glacier,  and 
I  felt  sure  we  could  get  up  that  way  somehow. 

About  twelve  miles  up  the  glacier  was  a  huge  nunatak  with 
a  cap  of  black  dolerite  rising  into  three  peaks.  This  cap  re- 
minded me  of  a  Chinese  junk,  but  Debenham  objected  to  Junk 
Mountain  and  suggested  Gondola  Mt.  It  was  sad  to  find 
out  later  that  Professor  David  on  his  journey  to  the  Magnetic 
Pole  had  seen  and  fixed  this  peak  and  called  it  Mount  Suess! 

As  will  be  seen  we  investigated  this  most  interesting  rock 
island  in  the  upper  Mackay  Glacier  fairly  thoroughly. 

On  the  5th,  about  4  P.M.,  we  started  off  with  a  week's  pro- 
visions to  map  the  northern  coast  of  the  harbour.  We  had  only 
one  sledge  and  got  along  in  fine  style — the  first  easy  sledging 
we  had  met — and  as  it  turned  out  practically  the  last!  We 
camped  at  6.30  at  the  end  of  the  Mackay  Tongue,  for  we  should 
lose  sight  of  all  our  survey  stations  if  we  went  farther. 

The  sky  looked  very  ugly — the  sun  dimly  glaring  through 
gloomy  clouds,  while  a  low  thick  band  of  dark  stratus  covered  the 
eastern  horizon.  The  barometer  fell  nearly  half  an  inch  in 
twelve  hours,  and  we  were  quite  expectant  of  a  blizzard,  for 
similar  conditions  on  a  smaller  scale  preceded  the  blizzard  at 
the  piedmont  tongue.     Our  meteorology  was  quite  sound.     The 


170  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [December 

first  furious  blizzard  we  had  experienced  now  commenced,  for 
the  wind  force  was  about  7,  while  the  drift  was  thick  and  wet- 
ting.    I  will  copy  my  diary  here. 

10  a.m. — We  have  a  pretty  snug  camp  on  snow  one  foot 
thick  which  you  can  accommodate  to  your  hip  bone,  but  which 
it  is  difficult  to  stand  the  primus  upon  (especially  as  the  cooker 
base  is  full  of  fat,  and  is  now  our  frying  pan  at  the  hut!).  It 
started  snowing  about  midnight  and  clothed  the  tent  by  3  a.m. 
I  woke  to  hear  the  tent  flapping  and  shaking  down  young  ava- 
lanches, and  it's  been  going  strong  ever  since. 

1  2  p.m. — Still  blizzing  strongly;  there  have  been  one  or  two 
lulls  of  a  few  minutes,  but  they  don't  seem  to  mean  much.  It  is 
snowing  like  fury  too,  pattering  on  the  tent  like  rain  on  wooden 
shingles.  If  you  budge  from  the  tent  (Debenham  did  so  to 
get  a  note-book)  you  get  very  cold  because  the  drift  melts 
and  wets  you  at  this  high  temperature  of  +  23  °.  We  had  a 
meal  about  1 1  A.M.,  Gran  cooking  a  good  pemmican  with  a  large 
supply  of  broken  biscuit  therein.  This  strong  S.E.  wind  blows 
practically  direct  from  Cape  Roberts  on  to  the  tongue  on  our 
lee,  so  I  don't  much  fear  it  will  shift  out  this  ice.  Anyhow  we 
can't  move  and  I'm  learning  to  take  these  blizzes  philosophically. 
Besides  the  bags  are  dry  and  warm,  and  when  I  tire  of  writing 
this  diary  I  snooze  a  bit,  and  then  read  Harker's  "  Petrology  " 
(Debenham's) ,  and  then  snooze  more.  Or  Poe's  "  Tales  "  (too 
fantastic  and  Oriental  to  please  me,  most  of  them),  or  "  Martin 
Chuzzlewit,"  or  German  Grammar.  Forde  is  reading  the 
"  Mysterious  Island  "  which  Gran  has  nearly  finished  at  last. 
Debenham  started  to  work  out  a  latitude  but  is  now  "  wropped 
in  Morfus."  Last  night's  "  hoosh  "  was  an  enormous  success, 
2y2  pots  of  Forde's  concentrated  seal-hoosh  mixed  with  water 
and  meal  made  a  top-hole  hoosh — very  tasty  and  all  indigenous ! 

'  6  p.m. — The  tent  is  beastly  sloppy.  We  have  just  finished 
our  lunch  and  if  we  can't  get  away,  that  is  our  last  meal  to-day. 
To-day  is  a  queer  camp — the  first  down  here  where  we  have 
actually  been  dripped  on  when  no  primus  is  going.  We  have 
put  the  cooker  under  the  tied-up  door  and  it  is  filling  I  see.  Forde 
is  dressing  his  hand  and  Debenham  keeping  warm  very  sensibly 
in  his  bag. 

'Noon. — It  is  now  noon  and  we  are  still  snowed  up  off  the 
end  of  the  Mackay  Tongue.     Forty-three  hours  now  and  we 


PRESSURE  ICE  BLOCKS  NEAR  DISCOVERY  BLUFF,   DUE  TO   THE   THRUST  OF 
THE  MACKAY   GLACIER   TONGUE    ON   THE   SEA-ICE 


THE    DEVIL  S  PUNCH  BOWL,    AN   EMPTY    CWM  IN  THE  SOUTH-WEST 
CORNER  OF  GRANITE  HARBOUR 


i9ii]  ANOTHER    BLIZZARD  171 

have  not  got  away.  It  dripped  most  of  the  night  for  the  tem- 
perature was  +  27  °  outside  and  warmer  inside.  There  was 
a  puddle  by  the  door,  but  Gran's  and  my  bags  have  absorbed 
most  of  that,  and  Debenham's  is  wetter.  I  put  on  my  boots, 
wind  coat,  and  puttees  and  dug  out  the  thermometer.  The 
sledge  is  buried  two  feet  under  snow.  Debenham's  big  camera 
tripod  shows  above  the  snow  and  a  bamboo  pole — also  the  top 
of  the  shovel — but  the  rest  is  clean  buried.  .  .  .  Then  I  came 
in  and  had  breakfast.' 

We  had  lunch  about  2  and  now  saw  blue  sky  occasionally 
to  the  east.  Gradually  the  whole  snow  cloud  blew  over  en 
masse  to  the  west,  leaving  blue  sky  and  a  bright  sun.  We  dug 
out  the  sledge,  nothing  of  which  showed,  and  tried  to  start  off. 
We  harnessed  up  alternately  so  as  to  beat  out  a  track  in  the 
soft  snow.  The  going  was  awful  and  the  sledge  pulled  us  flat 
on  our  faces  in  the  snow — of  course  wetting  us  through.  How- 
ever we  managed  to  do  about  a  mile  in  3  hours  and  pitched  camp 
in  the  middle  of  North  Bay. 

This  blizzard  is  evidently  the  same  which  delayed  Captain 
Scott  at  the  foot  of  the  Beardmore,  more  than  800  miles  south 
of  where  it  trapped  us. 

On  the  8th  we  had  an  eventful  day.  We  were  about  two 
miles  from  the  coast,  the  nearest  land  being  the  flat  glacier-cut 
shelf  which  we  named  the  Kar  Plateau.  '  We  loaded  up  the 
sledge  and  found  we  couldn't  move  it.  It  just  stuck  with  the 
prow  covered  with  soft  snow.  So  we  stuck  up  the  flag-pole  and 
"  packed  "  all  we  could  carry  on  our  backs.  Gran  went  first  with 
his  very  heavy  bag  (half  water)  and  the  tent  poles.  He  plugged 
away  in  great  style,  but  made  rather  a  devious  track  as  different 
parts  of  the  coast  appealed  to  him.  By  the  time  we  arrived 
near  the  land  Gran  was  manoeuvring  with  the  tent  poles  to  try 
and  cross  the  tide-crack.  This  was  a  rotten  affair.  An  ice  foot 
2  feet  or  more  high,  separated  from  us  by  a  couple  of  feet  of 
open  water,  was  bad  enough — but  nearly  forty  feet  of  the  floe 
was  soft  and  mushy,  so  that  through  the  thick  snow  you  could 
not  tell  which  was  hard  ice  and  which  open  water.  There  were 
seals  all  over  this  mushy  stuff  and  we  came  unexpectedly  on  their 
holes  nearly  buried  in  snow.  Debenham  and  Forde  were  look- 
ing down  one  to  see  the  thickness  of  the  mushy  ice,  when  a  seal 
leaped  out  three  feet,  and  as  Forde  pathetically  put  it  "  nearly 


172  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [December 

frightened  a  loife  out  of  me,  Sorr!  "  Meanwhile  Gran  had  laid 
the  poles  up  against  the  floe  and  left  his  bag  just  behind,  when  the 
mush  gave  way  and  in  he  went.  He  rescued  his  bag,  and  cling- 
ing to  the  poles  he  somehow  managed  to  crawl  up  the  ice  foot, 
but  he  was  pretty  wet  and  soon  very  cold. 

We  traversed  some  distance  to  the  north,  Gran  on  the  ice 
foot  and  myself  on  the  mush.  At  every  footstep  water  oozed 
up,  and  this  doubtful  belt  was  forty  feet  wide.  I  managed  to 
get  to  land,  but  we  could  not  have  got  the  sledge  over.  We 
returned  to  find  Debenham  had  gone  through  also.  So  I  deter- 
mined to  make  our  survey  from  where  we  left  the  sledge  and  to 
return  immediately  thereto. 

First,  however,  we  had  to  get  Gran  off  the  ice  foot.  He 
threw  his  bag  out  towards  us  and  as  I  went  to  get  it  I  went  in 
nearly  to  my  waist.  Luckily  I  managed  to  lean  back  on  to  less 
rotten  mush.  Then  we  lashed  the  bag  ropes  together  and  threw 
them  to  him.  He  threw  the  tent  poles  on  to  the  mush  and  then 
launched  himself  spread-eagle  on  the  poles.  The  whole  floe 
rocked  up  and  down  like  a  jelly,  but  the  poles  kept  him  up 
and  he  reached  us  without  further  mishap. 

This  slush — half  ice,  half  snow — was  much  riskier  than 
broken  floe,  for  there  was  nothing  to  grip,  and  I  think  Forde 
voiced  our  opinions  when  he  said :  '  You  done  a  wise  thing  to 
give  that  place  a  miss !  '  Gran  and  I  were  pretty  chilled  when 
we  reached  our  tent,  but  soon  got  warm  in  our  bags  and  slept 
off  any  ill  effects. 

We  had  an  even  more  difficult  time  returning.  My  diary  re- 
cords it  as  '  hellish.'  We  managed  the  two  miles  with  the  light 
sledge  in  four  hours,  during  which  we  experienced  an  interesting 
anatomical  phenomenon — as  if  our  insides  were  getting  driven 
out  of  our  backs  by  the  drag  of  the  harness! 

Next  day  by  evening  we  reached  Camp  Geology  again. 
Everything  was  buried  in  snow.  A  tin  of  biscuits  weighing  40 
lbs.  had  been  blown  six  feet  off  a  rock.  Granite  Hut  was  half 
filled  with  snow  and  we  later  found  that  our  flagpole  on  the 
bluff,  although  of  male  bamboo  two  inches  thick,  was  broken 
into  a  dozen  strands. 

December  10  was  a  Sunday,  and  we  registered  our  highest 
temperature  of  +  400.  We  expected  the  warmest  day  early 
in  January,  but  it  rarely  rose  above  freezing  point  any  more 


if ii]  ANTARCTIC    EGGS  173 

that  summer.  In  the  evening  Gran  and  I  planted  his  sea-kale 
seeds  on  a  patch  on  mossy  soil  inside  a  granite  hollow.  It 
seemed  a  bit  wet,  but  Gran  assured  us  it  would  be  up  in  a  week 
and  eatable  in  a  month!  Our  mouths  watered  at  the  thought 
of  cabbages,  though  I  don't  think  we  others  were  optimistic. 

The  ship  was  due  to  pick  us  up  in  about  a  month  to  take 
us  200  miles  north  to  Terra  Nova  Bay,  and  so  of  course  we 
thought  of  a  sweepstake  as  to  its  date  of  arrival.  Unfortunately 
we  couldn't  decide  on  a  stake.  Money  was  no  use.  We  should 
get  any  food  we  liked  when  we  got  on  board.  '  Gran  suggested 
the  first  bath  for  the  winter.  But  this  though  very  sensible  didn't 
catch  on,  for  as  we  have  no  clean  clothes  probably  we  won't 
waste  time  on  it !  ' 

The  next  few  days,  sledging  on  the  sea  ice  was  impossible, 
so  I  decided  to  survey  and  collect  near  our  headquarters.  I  took 
angles  for  the  latitude  and  longitude  of  Cape  Geology  (obtain- 
ing 1620  49/)  and  was  able  to  corroborate  our  sledgemeter 
record  as  to  the  correct  position  of  Granite  Harbour.  Deben- 
ham  and  Gran  climbed  to  the  highest  point  of  the  Rendezvous 
Bluff  and  found  its  height  to  be  1624  feet.  They  saw  open 
water  off  the  harbour. 

The  skuas  now  commenced  to  lay.  Gran  said  that  he  got 
his  first  egg  from  a  nest  half  full  of  water,  and  declared  that 
the  bird  looked  much  relieved  when  her  uncomfortable  charge 
was  removed.  Two  of  the  nests  which  I  saw  seemed  to  show 
faint  signs  of  intelligence  on  the  part  of  the  owners.  In  place 
of  a  mere  hole  in  the  wet  gravel  one  had  about  twenty  long 
feathers  arranged  round  the  edge — while  the  other  was  improved 
by  the  addition  of  some  dried  moss  which  the  bird  had  picked 
from  a  foot  away.  I  am  afraid  this  intellectual  activity  on  their 
part  did  not  preserve  their  eggs ! 

We  boiled  four  and  I  tasted  my  first  Antarctic  egg.  They 
are  the  size  of  a  small  hen's  egg,  brown  in  colour  with  black, 
tawny  and  buff  flecks  on  them.  They  have  not  so  much  taste 
as  those  of  the  common  fowl  and  the  albumen  is  translucent  and 
bluish.  They  were  very  good  and  I  could  have  managed  six, 
though  the  Polar  record  of  sixteen  was  I  felt  sure  beyond  my 
attainment. 

The  movement  of  the  Mackay  Tongue  was  an  interesting 
problem.     The  sea  ice  was  puckered  into  great  pressure  ridges 


174  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [December 

off  Cape  Geology  by  the  irresistible  outward  movement  of  the 
glacier.  Great  diagonal  cracks  traversed  the  floe  from  the  same 
reason.  So  I  decided  to  try  to  fix  a  stake  on  the  Tongue,  and 
with  the  theodolite  we  could  accurately  fix  its  progress  to  the 
east. 

The  chief  difficulty  was  to  get  a  mark.  We  had  no  wood 
to  spare.  Stones  would  sink  into  the  ice.  Finally  I  used  the 
broken  end  of  the  signal  pole.  I  tied  some  sealskin  on  the  top 
for  a  flag,  and  painted  it  well  with  blubber  soot,  of  which  un- 
limited quantities  coated  Granite  Hut.  Gran  and  I  walked 
over  to  the  Tongue  and  marched  200  yards  up  it  quite  easily. 
Then  we  suddenly  came  on  many  deep  crevasses  masked  by  snow 
round  which  we  had  to  steer  carefully. 

I  sighted  south  with  the  theodolite  to  the  tent  on  Cape 
Geology  and  north  to  a  large  crack  in  the  granite  of  the  Kar 
Plateau.  These  directions  were  not  collinear  of  course  at  first, 
but  I  moved  the  theodolite  until  they  were.  This  took  a  long 
time  and  we  had  to  go  back  to  get  round  a  crevasse  before  we 
got  it  fixed.  Returning  we  had  a  job  to  find  a  track  and  got 
lost  amid  the  parallel  crevasses,  which  had  an  awkward  tendency 
to  join  after  you  had  followed  them  for  a  few  hundred  yards. 
On  our  return  I  found  it  was  an  excellent  station,  the  stake  lying 
directly  in  line  with  the  crack  in  the  cliff  5  miles  off  across  the 
bay. 

As  a  result  of  the  seal-flensing  to  provide  a  roof  for  Granite 
Hut,  I  cut  myself  rather  frequently.  This  was  usual  and  a 
matter  of  no  moment  generally.  Seven  of  these  cuts  healed  up 
in  a  few  days,  but  one  on  my  right  hand  gave  rise  to  much 
trouble.  We  carried  a  medical  chest  full  of  pills,  and  Debenham 
was  sledge  doctor  and  knew  as  much  of  medicine  as  Dr.  Wilson 
could  get  on  a  sheet  of  notepaper.  He  felt  an  expert  at  snow- 
blindness,  frost-bites  and  dyspepsia,  but  my  hand  baffled  him. 
However,  Gran  had  served  on  many  vessels  in  his  naval  training 
and  at  first  I  had  great  faith  in  him.  He  gravely  felt  my  pulse, 
and  then  the  arm-pit.  '  Do  you  feel  any  pain  here  ?  '  I  truth- 
fully said  '  No !  '  '  No  blood  poisoning  in  that  finger,'  says 
Gran.  Next  day  it  was  worse,  and  Gran  proceeded  to  lance  it 
with  great  gusto,  with  the  result  that  the  thumb  and  two  fingers 
swelled  double  normal  size.  For  a  week  I  could  not  sleep,  and 
I  tried  all  sorts  of  bandages  and  most  of  the  pills — as  expert 


i9ii]  CHRISTMAS    DAY  175 

opinion  favoured  frost-bite,  rheumatism,  or  blood-poisoning. 
Gran  remembered  aspirin  as  good  for  rheumatism — so  the  pa- 
tient swallowed  two.  Then  he  said  he  meant  salicylate,  so  I  took 
two  of  them !  and  then  he  cheered  us  by  telling  us  how  a  former 
invalid  with  whom  he  had  had  medical  dealings  died  on  his 
hands ! 

However,  on  the  16th  we  sledged  to  the  head  of  the  harbour 
to  examine  the  numerous  capes  and  bays  and  to  try  and  find  a 
path  up  to  the  great  inland  plateau.  First  of  all  we  made  for  a 
low  dark  cape  from  which  the  Mackay  Glacier  had  receded 
slightly.  From  our  hut  it  looked  just  like  a  black  hand  stretched 
out  from  a  snowy  cuff — so  we  named  it  Cuff  Cape.  We  found  it 
a  very  interesting  spot  with  moraines,  rock-striae,  perched  blocks, 
and  other  evidences  of  past  ice  action  in  great  profusion. 

The  next  few  days  we  explored  and  mapped  a  headland  which 
we  called  the  Flat  Iron  from  its  resemblance  to  the  sky-scraper 
of  that  name.  On  its  southern  face  was  a  deep  bowl-shaped  bay 
with  a  little  hanging  glacier  at  the  back,  and  possessing  a  dry 
gravelly  beach.  Here  in  the  Devil's  Punch  Bowl  beneath  the 
Devil's  Thumb  we  stayed  till  December  23. 

It  was  a  grand  collecting  ground.  Almost  every  variety  of 
granite,  diorite  and  gabbro  occurred  on  the  Flat  Iron.  Deben- 
ham  found  a  great  '  dyke  '  of  marble  included  in  the  granites, 
and  containing  large  specimens  of  natrolite,  pyroxene,  and  am- 
phibolite.  The  New  Glacier  had  only  just  ceased  to  cascade 
over  the  Devil's  Ridge  into  the  Punch  Bowl,  and  the  condition 
of  this  narrow  granite  ridge  exposed  after  its  submergence  by  a 
huge  glacier  was  of  extreme  interest  to  the  physiographer. 

There  were  several  pretty  little  tarns  on  the  slopes,  and 
Gran  celebrated  Midsummer  Day  by  a  dip,  in  which  I  would 
willingly  have  accompanied  him  but  for  my  disabled  hand. 

Towards  the  end  of  this  trip  I  began  to  be  able  to  read  my 
own  left-hand  writing.  Unfortunately  no  one  else  has  succeeded 
in  doing  so,  and  I  find  that  the  meaning  of  many  (no  doubt)  most 
valuable  notes  is  now  lost  to  me  also ! 

By  Christmas  Day  we  were  back  at  Cape  Geology  ready  to 
tackle  the  hinterland.  We  celebrated  the  day  in  a  manner  worthy 
of  the  occasion.  Forde  rigged  up  all  our  sledge-flags;  Gran's, 
which  was  given  to  him  by  Queen  Maud  of  Norway,  Debenham's 
and  mine  with  Australian  and  Cambridge  emblems,  while  Forde, 


1 76  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [December 

not  to  be  outdone,  cut  out  a  white  harp  from  a  linen  specimen- 
bag  and  sewed  it  on  some  green  burberry!  We  had  a  fine  lunch. 
Twenty-seven  skua  eggs  had  been  collected,  and  Forde  took  the 
precaution  of  cracking  them  first.  The  first  showed  considerable 
development — but  he  went  into  the  fry,  much  to  Gran's  disgust. 
Then  about  four  fair  ones  and  then  eight  bad  ones;  and  finally 
we  had  two  each — a  thirty  per  cent,  success !  We  opened  the 
Christmas  bag;  a  slice  of  pudding  each,  with  ginger  and  caramels. 
An  epicurean  feast  I  warrant  you. 

A  dense  sea  fog  rolled  in  that  night  and  enveloped  every- 
thing, and  next  morning  all  of  us  (except  Gran  whom  nothing 
harmed)  had  rheumatic  pains.  Luckily  this  wore  off  later.  It 
was  Debenham's  birthday  so  we  finished  the  box  of  chocolates, 
and  Gran  gave  him  a  long-treasured  box  of  cigarettes. 

At  noon  of  the  27th  we  once  more  reached  the  Flat  Iron. 
I  was  at  first  of  the  opinion  that  the  New  Glacier  would  be  the 
easier  route,  but  the  others  favoured  the  Flat  Iron,  and  their 
arguments  decided  me  to  try  that  route.  We  found  it  much 
easier  than  the  glacier  would  have  been.  However,  it  was  no 
joke  reaching  the  snow  plateau  behind  the  Flat  Iron.  We  had 
to  climb  one  thousand  feet  of  rough  granite-strewn  slopes  carry- 
ing the  sledge  and  fourteen  days'  provisions  on  our  backs. 

Gran  and  Forde  managed  the  thirteen-foot  sledge,  while 
Debenham  and  I  transported  gear,  but  it  took  a  long  time  and 
many  traverses  to  get  everything  up  to  our  camp  on.  the  snow. 
Luckily  my  disabled  hand  did  not  prevent  sledge-hauling  or  pack- 
ing, but  it  was  now  a  long  time  since  I  had  been  able  to  sketch, 
photograph,  or  use  the  theodolite. 

From  the  camp  we  could  see  open  water,  but  it  was  a  long 
way  off;  so  that  I  wrote:  '  It  must  go  out  a  mile  a  day,  or  Pen- 
nell  will  have  trouble  to  meet  us.'  I  remember  we  spent  that 
evening  discussing  a  proposed  sledge  trip  in  Norway  over  the 
little  ice-cap  of  Justedals  Brae. 

We  left  our  snug  gravelly  camp  after  breakfast  and  pushed 
off  up  the  great  glacier.  We  were  well  knotted  to  the  sledge  and 
I  went  on  a  longer  line  so  as  to  prospect  for  crevasses.  It  was 
comforting  to  think  that  though  I  couldn't  help  to  pull  any- 
one else  out,  the  other  three  would  have  no  difficulty  in  dragging 
me  up.  We  zigzagged  down  from  the  Flat  Iron  on  to  the  snow 
plateau.     This  was  about  ten  miles  wide  and  seven  miles  long. 


East 


Mt.  Suess 


Great  Ice  Plateau 
Gondola  Ridge  Mt.  Tryggve  Gran 


Flat  Iron 
PANORAMA    FROM    DISCOVERY    BLUFF,    LOOKING    NORTHS 

Forde  and  Taylor 


ST  UP  THE  I 


THE    TOP    OF    MOUNT    SUESS,    LOOKING    SOUTH.       TWO    FIGURES    ON    THE  |'1[)III  r 


MMIT    GIVE    SOME    IDEA    OF    THE    STUPENDOUS    CLIFFS    2000    FEET    HIGH 


19"]  DIFFICULT    SKETCHING  177 

It  was  bounded  by  the  long  red  ridge  of  granite  ahead  of  us 
which  we  called  the  Redcliff  Nunakol.  On  the  south  were  the 
crevasses  of  the  new  glacier,  while  on  the  north  were  the  ice- 
falls  of  the  Mackay,  like  a  suddenly  frozen  storm-tossed  sea. 
Gran  said  this  would  be  called  Skauk  in  Scandinavia,  so  we 
adopted  that  name. 

The  surface  was  covered  with  deep  snow  and  there  were 
many  east-west  depressions  in  this,  into  which  we  fell  occasion- 
ally. I  am  not  sure  if  they  were  crevasses,  they  may  have  been 
subglacial  streams.  We  heard  here  the  eerie  '  Barrier  Shudder,' 
as  the  surface  fell  in  around  us,  but  familiarity  made  us  disregard 
this. 

There  was  a  wonderful  series  of  peaks  to  the  south,  rising 
about  5000  feet  high  and  separated  by  the  snow-filled  bowls 
which  are  technically  called  cwms.  Mount  England  was  a  very 
prominent  object  to  the  south-east,  confronting  us  with  a 
giant  wall  of  granite  4000  feet  high.  This  was  seamed  by 
couloirs  and  gullies,  down  which  small  snow  avalanches  formed 
white  tongues  leading  to  the  crevassed  slopes  of  the  New  Glacier 
below. 

About  four  o'clock  we  deviated  to  the  south  so  as  to  camp  on 
the  Redcliff  Nunakol.  We  descended  a  little  the  last  mile  and 
finally  crossed  a  large  frozen  lake  and  reached  a  gravelly  point 
on  the  nunakol.  Here  we  pitched  a  comfortable  camp  about  30 
feet  above  the  glacier.  Alongside  was  a  little  waterfall  flowing 
from  a  marshy  flat  on  which  some  moss  was  growing. 

We  spent  December  29  surveying  this  island  in  the  glacier. 
It  was  about  1000  feet  above  the  glacier,  but  its  rounded  con- 
tours showed  that  it  had  been  overwhelmed  by  the  ice  flood, 
fairly  recently  in  geological  time.  About  5  miles  farther  west 
was  Gondola  Mountain  (Mount  Suess).  This  was  a  true  nuna- 
tak  or  '  lonely  peak  ' ;  for  it  towered  3000  feet  above  the  glacier 
and  its  jagged  summit  had  not  been  planed  by  the  Mackay 
Glacier  at  its  period  of  maximum  flood. 

Forde  carried  the  theodolite  up  for  me,  and  I  managed  to 
sketch  the  panorama.  It  extended  over  sixteen  pages  of  my 
notebook,  and  under  the  circumstances  was  a  work  of  art;  for 
there  was  a  cold  wind  blowing,  and  I  hadn't  been  able  to  draw 
for  weeks.  Many  of  the  boulders  had  pot  holes  eroded  in  them, 
I  think  by  wind  and  frost  action.     I  boldly  attempted  to  draw 

VOL.  II — 12 


178  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [December 

these  also,  sitting  with  my  boots  among  them  and  drawing  the 
latter  also  to  show  the  scale ! 

We  were  confined  to  the  tent  by  snow  all  the  next  day.  De- 
benham  and  I  made  a  chess-board  on  the  back  of  his  plane-table 
and  cut  out  card  discs  for  the  pieces.  After  several  weeks  we 
began  to  realise  the  appearance  of  the  men,  and  later  we  played 
many  games  while  we  were  waiting  on  Cape  Roberts. 

On  the  last  day  of  191 1  we  left  this  camp  and  moved  west 
to  Gondola  Mountain.  The  glacier  was  deeply  snow-covered, 
and  though  we  sank  in  it  the  sledge  pulled  pretty  well.  There 
must  have  been  plenty  of  crevasses  where  the  ice  stream  curved 
round  the  end  of  the  nunakol,  but  though  we  sank  in  a  foot  or 
two  at  times,  yet  the  snow  was  so  deep  we  didn't  break  through 
anywhere.  The  sun  came  out  to  cheer  us,  and  later  in  the  day 
we  reached  a  scattered  moraine  of  granite  blocks.  The  ice  had 
been  melted  here  in  the  previous  summer,  and  we  heard  the  old 
familiar  creaking  and  splintering  of  '  glass-house  '  and  '  bottle- 
glass  '  which  reminded  Debenham  and  myself  of  our  trip  up  the 
Koettlitz  Glacier. 

Finally  we  came  to  a  sudden  ice  cliff  about  100  feet  high, 
but  just  not  too  steep  for  tobogganning.  So  we  '  let  her  go  '  and 
slid  down  into  the  stream-cut  gully  which  fringed  the  Gondola 
Ridge. 

This  was  the  most  interesting  locality  I  saw  in  Antarctica. 
On  nearer  approach  the  likeness  to  a  gondola  disappeared,  as 
the  great  granite  buttress  supporting  the  dolerite  capping  came 
into  view.  I  must  apologise  for  comparing  this  fine  mountain  to 
a  decayed  molar  tooth,  with  three  black  cusps  and  a  rounded  hol- 
low between,  but  there  was  a  great  similarity  in  shape.  To  the 
north  of  the  nunatak  was  a  low  ridge  about  two  miles  long,  com- 
posed of  granite  and  separated  from  the  mount  by  a  col  or  pass 
which  rose  but  little  above  the  glacier  level.  All  along  the  east- 
ern slopes  were  piles  of  moraine  material.  Great  cones  of  debris, 
built  up  of  granite,  dolerite  and  a  yellow  rock  (which  we  were 
glad  to  recognise  as  Beacon  Sandstone),  stood  out  like  watch- 
towers  on  the  morainic  rampart. 

Towards  one  of  these,  like  a  railway  embankment  of  yellow 
sand,  we  directed  our  way.  We  carried  our  gear  to  the  top, 
smoothed  off  the  site  somewhat,  and  then  pitched  our  camp  on 
mesozoic  sandstones — probably  the  first  time  this  has  been  done 


19"]  COAL  179 

in  Victoria  Land !  Just  below  was  a  little  lake  dammed  by  the 
embankment,  and  when  I  cut  through  three  inches  of  ice  near 
a  big  black  boulder,  a  bountiful  supply  of  water  welled  up  in  the 
hole.  On  the  bank  was  some  dark  shale,  by  far  the  most  prom- 
ising rock  for  fossils  that  we  had  yet  seen.  Before  the  day  was 
over  Debenham  had  found  some,  and  we  examined  all  the  shale 
carefully  and  obtained  many  specimens.  They  were  vesicular 
horny  plates  shaped  like  the  tiles  capping  a  roof  ridge.  Some 
were  about  two  inches  long  and  had  a  well-marked  keel.  Others 
had  a  beautiful  bluish  lustre,  and  there  were  bits  of  wood  in  the 
shale  also.  (They  are  very  like  the  armour-plates  of  certain 
mesozoic  fish,  but  they  have  not  yet  been  submitted  to  a  specialist.) 

A  heavy  cloud-fog  descended  over  us  next  morning,  but  in 
the  afternoon  cleared  off  a  little.  The  dark  pall  shrouded  Gon- 
dola Mountain,  but  hung  about  3000  feet  up  for  the  most  part. 
Gran  and  I  explored  the  Gondola  Ridge  behind  the  tent.  Some 
of  the  fine-grained  boulders  were  beautifully  polished  by  the  fric- 
tion of  the  glacier  ice.  I  thought  I  saw  a  skua  egg  here,  but  it 
was  a  piece  of  mottled  sandstone  exactly  the  same  size  and  shape. 
All  the  crags  were  roche  moutonnee,  i.e.  rounded  by  the  ancient 
glacier,  the  lower  eastern  face  being  almost  mirror-like  in  places 
from  the  scour  of  the  ice.  Here  and  there  we  came  on  large 
perched  blocks,  sometimes  precariously  poised  on  three  or  four 
small  pebbles. 

During  the  night  we  found  it  rather  cold.  Consequently  I 
slept  with  my  head  right  in  the  bag  and  awoke  rather  late  from 
an  exciting  railway  accident!  However,  nothing  was  lost 
thereby,  for  the  heavens  still  encompassed  us.  Forde  put  in  some 
good  work  with  wax  ends  on  my  boot,  and  I  searched  the  shales 
near  the  tent  and  found  more  '  sarpent  critters,'  as  Seaman  Evans 
christened  all  our  fossils. 

Debenham  made  another  discovery;  this  time  of  some  lumps 
of  coal,  and  we  got  many  specimens  later  of  the  same  material. 
All  these  were  in  the  moraine  just  north-east  of  Gondola  Nuna- 
tak  and  I  was  anxious  to  find  their  original  home.  The  3rd  was 
a  more  promising  day,  and  Gran  and  I  determined  to  circumnavi- 
gate the  nunatak  if  possible.  We  walked  along  to  the  south  over 
the  great  moraine  which  fringed  the  granite  ridge.  There  were 
some  large  blocks  of  granite  in  this,  some  twenty  feet  across. 
There  was  of  course  much  of  the  basic  rock  (dolerite)  also,  for 


180  SCOTT'S'   LAST     EXPEDITION  [January 

we  could  see  that  the  cap  of  the  nunatak  was  formed  of  jointed 
columns  recalling  those  of  Staffa. 

On  the  south-west  face  of  the  nunatak  we  saw  a  long  lenticu- 
lar mass  of  yellow  sedimentary  rock  lying  above  the  red  granite, 
but  below  the  black  dolerite  cap.  It  was  quite  inaccessible,  being 
about  iooo  feet  up,  but  I  have  little  doubt  that  the  shales  and 
coal  were  associated  with  this  formation,  for  the  moraine  trended 
exactly  in  that  direction. 

Meanwhile  Debenham  and  Forde  had  reached  the  central 
hollow  of  the  nunatak,  but  had  not  time  to  ascend  one  of  the 
'  cusps.' 

On  the  4th — leaving  Debenham  busy  with  the  plane  table — 
we  others  attacked  the  nunatak.  Gran  had  his  camera,  I  took  the 
theodolite  in  a  ruck-sak,  and  Forde  carried  the  legs.  The  eastern 
face  of  the  nunatak  consisted  of  a  giant  granite  bulwark  1800 
feet  above  the  ice.  Dark  dykes  had  weathered  out  somewhat,  so 
that  it  appeared  to  be  pierced  for  guns.  We  scrambled  up  the 
gap  between  the  bulwarks  and  the  deck  of  the  Gondola  and  found 
the  latter  occupied  by  two  little  lakes.  From  here  we  separated, 
Gran  making  for  the  north-west  cusp  while  Forde  and  I  chose 
the  south-west  peak.  The  slope  was  very  steep  and  consisted  of 
granite  and  sandstone  up  to  200  feet.  Then  everything  was 
covered  by  the  broken  columns  of  dolerite.  I  think,  however, 
that  hereabouts  the  sandstone  layer  was  in  situ,  and  in  view  of 
the  paucity  of  fossiliferous  beds  in  Victoria  Land,  all  such  occur- 
rences have  an  especial  interest. 

I  reached  the  top  about  2  a.m.  and  found  it  3000  feet  above 
the  tent.  Gran  soon  appeared  on  the  other  peak,  which  the  theo- 
dolite made  100  feet  lower — much  to  his  disgust! 

The  view  was  magnificent.  A  few  feet  away  was  a  thousand- 
foot  precipice  above  the  lower  talus  slopes.  Out  to  sea  we  could 
see  miles  of  open  water,  with  floes  drifting  about  therein,  but  it 
looked  no  nearer  than  a  month  ago.  I  guessed  it  10  miles  east 
of  Cape  Roberts  (Pennell  said  the  pack  ice  was  nearer  30  miles 
wide).  Some  four  miles  to  the  south  was  a  gap  in  the  mountain 
wall  where  a  low-level  distributary  glacier  seemed  to  flow  into  the 
next  great  valley.  The  gigantic  cliffs  at  each  side  were  topped 
by  natural  forts  composed  of  Beacon  sandstones  and  shales.  I 
have  named  this  interesting  glacier  the  Miller  Glacier — while 
Debenham   christened   one   to   the   north   the   Cleveland.      He 


Piedmont  Glacier 


Mt.  Marston 
Kar  Plateau 


Gran 


A    PANORAMA    OF    CAPE    ROBERTS,    WHERE    THE    WESTERN    ]|  1IY  WAS  I 


The  Hay 


AVALANCHE    CLIFFS   ON    THE    SOUTH    SIDE    OF    GRANITE    HARBOUR.       HERE    THE    PIEDMONT    IC  0^Rs 


AC 


Outer  Granite  Harbour 


IIERXPTY    WAS    ISOLATED    FOR    THREE    WEEKS.       LOOKING    NORTH 


Mt.  England 


m^;:,,;:; 


[See  p.  241 


nM0NllC  DVERS    A    CWM    ON    THE    LEFT>    BUT    IS    DISCONTINUOUS    OVER    THE    CLIFFS    ON    THE    RIGHT 


19X2]  A    SEA    FOG  181 

naively    explained    that  his    friends  must    have  a  large    glacier 
because  there  was  such  a  lot  of  them! 

To  the  west,  about  ten  miles  away,  was  the  ice  plateau  de- 
scending in  ice  falls  and  marked  by  two  (rock)  nunakols.  There 
was  apparently  a  fairly  easy  route  to  the  ice  plateau  to  the  south 
of  this  nunakol — certainly  shorter  and  probably  not  so  crevassed 
as  the  route  via  the  Ferrar  and  Taylor  glaciers.  A  very  high 
mountain  showed  up  to  the  south-west — 10,000  feet  I  should 
think,  but  all  our  survey  angles  were  so  acute  that  it  is  difficult 
to  fix  their  distance  exactly.  To  the  north-west  was  a  fine  black- 
capped  peak  where  the  glacier  left  the  Plateau.  This  I  called 
Mount  Tryggve  Gran. 

We  were  due  back  at  Cape  Geology  about  the  8th,  so  I  felt 
that  this  was  our  western  limit.  We  spent  another  day  surveying 
the  nunatak  and  collecting  more  coal  and  fossils,  and  left  about 
noon  on  the  6th  for  our  return  to  the  rendezvous.  We  reached 
our  Flat  Iron  Camp  without  incident  and  devoted  a  day  to  collect- 
ing and  photography. 

One  photograph  was  an  epitome  of  the  physiography  of  the 
region.  I  note  that  it  shows  '  The  ice  face,  the  crevasses,  the 
skauk,  young  u  calved  "  bergs,  low  moraines,  retreating  glacier, 
high  moraines,  granite  pavements,  shear  cracks  in  the  bay  ice, 
the  ice  tongue,  the  facetted  cliffs,  cwm  valleys,  overflow  glacier- 
ers,  hogback  ridges,  non-glaciated  peaks,  the  old  glacier  flood 
floor,  and  the  junction  of  the  granite  and  the  dolerite.'  All  this 
on  a  single  J4 -plate  negative! 

Each  day  I  entered  up  the  meteorological  log.  The  clouds 
were  described  also,  very  often  by  the  word  overcast.  But  this 
afternoon  we  noticed  the  sea  fog  rolling  in  below  us,  gradually 
blotting  out  the  bay,  then  the  ice  tongue  and  the  headlands  below. 
I  was  some  distance  away  from  the  tent  and  before  I  could  return 
the  camp  was  completely  hidden.  The  others  also  managed  to 
get  back  safely,  but  the  cold  and  the  high  cliffs  round  the  Flat 
Iron  made  it  a  nasty  place  to  be  lost  in  the  fog.  We  could  do 
nothing  much  that  afternoon  and  I  described  the  weather  in  one 
word  as  undercast! 

We  had  a  chapter  of  small  accidents  while  we  were  trans- 
porting our  gear  down  to  the  sea  ice  1000  feet  below  us.  I 
found  on  arrival  that  the  cap  of  the  theodolite  stand  had  joggled 
off.     I  returned  and  met  Forde.     He  looked  at  his  load  and 


1 82  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [January 

found  the  handle  of  the  primus  pump  had  disappeared.  We 
spent  some  time  searching,  but  it  was  quite  useless  among  the 
rough  granite  blocks.  Just  as  we  started  pulling  on  the  sea  ice 
Debenham  missed  the  sight-ruler,  an  indispensable  part  of  the 
plane  table.  Luckily  he  found  this  about  a  mile  back  and  Forde 
managed  to  make  some  ingenious  leather  caps  that  served  in- 
stead of  the  other  lost  articles. 

According  to  orders  we  now  spent  the  last  week  surveying 
the  neighbourhood  of  the  rendezvous.  The  blubber  stove  was 
going  strong  most  of  the  day  to  melt  water  or  cook  supper.  We 
used  to  light  it  with  paper  rubbed  in  the  blubber.  The  black 
sooty  blubber  oil  would  leak  out  and  melt  the  ice  on  the  floor 
of  the  hut.  The  soot  caked  all  the  cooking  utensils,  and  spread 
itself  liberally  over  us.  Gran  could  always  be  relied  on  to  make 
any  special  delicacy  such  as  porridge,  for  which  we  saved  our 
1  thickers  '  and  a  little  oatmeal  we  had.  This  used  to  take  him 
about  three  hours  in  the  cold  hut — while  we  worked  out  sights  or 
wrote  notes  snugly  in  the  comparatively  clean  tent. 

Moreover  on  these  occasions  Gran  enlivened  the  cape  by  car- 
olling grand  opera.  When  he  felt  the  cold  and  soot  and  smoke 
rather  too  much  for  him  '  Pagliacci '  or  '  Bertran  du  Born  ' 
would  sink  to  pianissimo.  Then  we  would  shout  our  '  Bravos  ' 
and  i  Encores  '  and  the  northern  Caruso  would  start  off  again 
and  away  flew  the  skuas.  So  by  degrees  a  steaming  pot  of 
'  good  stoof,  that  will  stick  to  your  ribs  '  was  brought  to  the 
tent  by  our  hardy  Norse  mate. 

We  found  Gran's  seakale  sprouting  in  their  rock  garden.  No 
less  than  twelve  dicotyledons !  I'm  sure  they  were  the  first  grown 
under  natural  (or  rather  unnatural)  conditions  in  77 °  South. 
Unfortunately  they  only  flourished  a  week,  and  even  the  native 
mosses  did  not  get  green  that  summer — which  made  me  sure  it 
was  a  very  cold  January. 

On  the  10th  there  was  an  addition  to  our  circle.  Gran  found 
two  skua  chicks  in  one  nest  and  took  one  as  a  pet.  He  tried  to 
feed  it,  with  the  result  that  it  nearly  died;  so  he  returned  it. 
However,  one  of  the  pair  of  chicks  is  always  killed  in  the  first 
week  or  so. 

Gran  and  I  went  over  to  the  Mackay  Ice  Tongue  to  deter- 
mine accurately  the  movement  of  the  latter  in  the  past  thirty  days. 
We  reached  the  stake  without  much  trouble  by  prodding  for  the 
crevasses  and  then  set  about  finding  its  progress  to  the  east. 


i9i2]  GLACIER    MOVEMENTS  183 

Gran  had  my  Goerz  glasses,  and  lying  full  length  on  the  snow  he 
observed  Debenham.  The  latter  was  stationed  at  the  theodolite 
some  two  miles  off  at  Cape  Geology,  and  signalled  to  Gran  with 
a  flag  as  to  which  way  I  was  to  move.  Finally  I  got  just  in  a 
line  with  my  transit  of  December  14.  I  measured  the  distance 
to  the  stake  and  it  was  82  feet !  The  glacier  moves  nearly  a  yard 
a  day.  Debenham's  conjecture  that  the  Discovery  made  no  men- 
tion of  this  imposing  tongue  because  it  was  not  imposing  in  1902  ! 
is  very  likely  correct.  It  may  easily  have  been  several  miles 
shorter  when  Captain  Scott  first  saw  the  Rendezvous  Bluff. 

The  date  of  our  relief  now  approached.  Captain  Scott 
wrote :  '  It  will  certainly  be  wise  for  you  to  confine  your  move- 
ments to  the  region  of  Granite  Harbour  during  the  second  week 
in  January.  .  .  .  You  will  of  course  make  every  effort  to  be  at 
the  rendezvous  at  the  proper  time,  January  15.' 

There  was  nothing  further  to  do  near  Cape  Geology.  One 
of  the  most  difficult  portions  of  our  retreat  was  the  nine  miles 
between  Cape  Geology  and  the  mouth  of  Granite  Harbour.  I 
decided — after  consulting  the  others — to  leave  for  Cape  Roberts 
on  the  14th,  for  there  we  should  also  be  in  a  better  position  to  see 
the  ship,  while  if  the  bay  ice  *  went  out '  there  was  no  feasible 
way  out  of  the  cul-de-sac  at  Cape  Geology. 

We  packed  up  all  we  should  require  at  Terra  Nova  Bay — 
where  we  were  to  spend  the  last  four  weeks  of  summer — and  left 
the  600  lbs.  of  specimens,  spare  boots,  &c,  at  Cape  Geology, 
where  they  could  be  picked  up  by  the  ship. 

We  moved  off  at  7.30  on  the  14th.  We  had  a  very  heavy 
load  for  one  sledge — 900  lbs.  I  believe — but  I  hoped  we  could 
pull  it  without  relaying.  The  surface  was  bad,  being  several 
inches  deep  in  new-fallen  snow.  We  took  an  hour  to  do  the  first 
mile  and  then  had  to  cross  one  of  the  many  wide  shear  cracks. 
These  were  twenty  feet  wide  and  were  literally  torn  in  the  six- 
foot  bay  ice  by  the  irresistible  pressure  of  the  Mackay  Tongue. 
The  edges  were  ragged — and  composed  of  interlocking  promon- 
tories. By  means  of  these  and  an  island  jammed  between  we  got 
our  load  across  safely.  The  east  was  very  gloomy  and  it  started 
to  snow.  In  previous  years  this  bay  had  been  clear  of  ice  in 
January — so  that  I  did  not  want  to  be  caught  in  a  blizzard 
on  it  in  the  middle  of  that  month.  The  surface  improved 
slightly,  but  we  next  struck  a  30-foot  shear  crack  filled  with 
mushy  snow. 


1 84  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [January 

A  little  searching  showed  us  a  possible  track.  Debenham  and 
I  tied  together  and  crossed  first  and  then  the  others,  and  then 
we  judged  the  sledge  might  do  it.  I  expect  it  would  have  sunk 
like  a  stone  if  the  ice  had  given  way,  but  we  had  to  get  over  here 
or  nowhere. 

The  snow  came  down  thickly  now  and  we  plugged  ahead, 
steering  by  compass  for  the  small  piedmont  tongue  where  we  had 
been  held  up  two  days  on  our  arrival.  Suddenly  we  seemed  to 
run  into  a  snow  slope — and  by  a  mighty  expenditure  of  energy 
we  got  the  sledge  up  on  to  the  tongue  and  were  safely  on  fixed  ice 
for  the  time. 

We  soon  got  the  tent  pitched,  for  there  was  not  much  wind, 
and  had  some  tea.     I  will  quote  my  diary. 

'  We  were  all  in  a  cold  sweat — for  the  work  is  very  hard, 
and  yet  you  don't  keep  warm.  However  we  got  into  our  bags 
and  were  soon  warm,  if  damp.  This  blizzard  was  but  tempo- 
rary, and  about  4  P.M.  it  blew  over  to  the  west.  I  crossed  the 
tongue  to  see  the  descent  on  the  other  side.  It  was  about  five  feet 
down  a  steep  snow  slope.  Beyond  was  a  narrow  shear  crack 
with  two  seals,  but  the  big  crack  at  the  end  of  the  tongue  went 
farther  east.  We  pulled  over  the  glacier  and  down  the  slope  past 
the  seals  without  difficulty.  Then  on  a  little  farther  and  saw  a 
crack  to  our  right.  It  seemed  only  about  a  foot  wide,  and  I  was 
testing  this  weak  spot  with  the  ski-stick,  when  the  soft  snow  on 
which  I  was  standing  collapsed  and  I  went  into  the  water.  Luck- 
ily I  grabbed  Deb's  hand,  and  Forde  and  Gran  got  my  harness. 
I  saw  jerked  out  like  a  cork  from  a  bottle  and  was  never  so  near 
flying!  None  saw  the  others  pull,  and  they  all  thought  I  felt 
very  light !  We  plugged  on  to  the  east  and  came  to  the  main 
wavy  crack — an  ugly  blighter  30  feet  across  of  mushy  water. 
Luckily  this  also  narrowed  at  the  bend,  and  after  some  searching 
we  pulled  over  him  also. 

1  I  was  getting  jolly  tired  here.  However,  we  could  see  our 
destination  at  last  and  so  pushed  on.  A  keen  wind  came  up  from 
the  south-west  and  swept  over  the  100-foot  glacier  wall  to  the 
south,  driving  snow  across  our  course.  We  crossed  a  little  crack 
which  Debenham  thought  was  new  since  the  snowfall !  To  our 
left  were  many  birds  about  a  mile  away  and  black  patches  of 
ominous  appearance  were  showing.  Debenham  climbed  on  the 
sledge  and  was  sure  it  was  open  water,  and  I  agreed,  but  we 


i9i2]  THE    SKUA    GULLS  185 

couldn't  do  anything  and  pushed  on.  I  got  some  relief  for  my 
blessed  tired  legs  by  marching  a  longer  stride,  and  we  plugged  on 
hoping  it  would  hold  firm  another  hour.  However  at  long 
length  we  began  to  see  details  in  the  never-ending  glacier  wall  on 
our  left — icicles,  crevasses  and  snow-drifts — and  at  last  could 
make  out  a  feasible  slope  up  on  to  the  cape  and  felt  safe.  I  had 
cramp  from  the  pulling  and  couldn't  move  for  a  time.'  It  was, 
however,  a  distinct  anticlimax  when  we  got  to  the  top  of  the  cape 
to  see  that  we  had  been  misled  by  some  queer  shadows,  that 
there  was  firm  ice  for  at  least  seven  miles  and  no  sign  of  water 
anywhere !  However,  our  experience  at  New  Harbour  made 
both  Debenham  and  myself  realise  the  risk  we  were  running  if 
the  break-up  of  the  ice — now  long  overdue — had  eventuated. 

1  Monday,  January  15,  191 2;  the  day  on  which  we  were  to 
be  relieved.  Nary  a  relief — nor  any  sign  of  it,  and  skuas 
squawking  round  us ! 

'  We  surveyed  our  cape  expecting  to  find  lots,  of  pools  of 
water,  but  there  is  none  anywhere.  Everything  is  covered  with 
snow  except  the  big  boulders  and  three  patches  of  gravel — of 
which  we  have  annexed  the  largest.'  When  we  arrived  each  was 
inhabited  by  a  pair  of  skua  gulls — which  we  may  call  White, 
Black,  and  Gray.  The  Whites  had  one  egg,  the  Blacks  a  young 
chick,  and  the  Grays  two  eggs.  The  history  of  these  families 
was  pathetic  in  the  extreme. 

We  dispossessed  the  Blacks,  and  I  put  young  Blackie  in  a 
new  nest — just  as  well  made  as  his  own — which  I  scraped  out  a 
little  distance  away.  The  parents  fled  squawking  and  left  the 
chicken  cruising  about  on  strong  stumpy  legs  with  the  head  low 
like  an  apteryx.  All  night  long  it  yelled  for  food,  so  next  day 
I  transferred  it  to  the  Whites'  nest  near  the  warm  egg.  Mean- 
while Debenham  set  up  the  blubber  stove  on  a  rock  ledge  near  by, 
to  get  to  which  he  crossed  the  Grays'  nest  rather  frequently. 
They  resented  this,  but  sensibly  made  the  best  of  a  bad  job  and 
ate  up  their  eggs. 

The  further  history  of  young  Blackie  was  chronicled  by  the 
Sledge  Poet: 

'  Lo!    A  miracle  hath  happened,'  said  returning  Skua- White, 
1  Here's  our  nest  just  full  of  chicken,  full  of  howling  appetite.' 
Said  Skua- White  unto  his  mate,  '  For  fear  this  should  become  a  habit 
We'd  better  eat  our  egg — Besides,  you  may  be  very  sure  he'd  grab  it.' 


1 86  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [January 

So  little  Blackie  reigned  supreme 

Until  one  day  when  he  was  fed 

By  the  kind  and  humane  leader, 

Foster  father,  foster  feeder, 

On  rich  and  tasty  lumps  of  blubber 

His  little  tummy  stretched  like  rubber, 

Stretched  too  much  .  .  .  and  now  he's  dead. 

The  skuas  are  the  most  quarrelsome  birds  I  know.  They 
would  fight  for  hours  over  the  carcase  of  a  freshly  killed  seal 
before  they  realised  there  was  enough  food  for  ten  times  as 
many  skuas — and  by  this  time  the  flesh  would  be  frozen  so  hard 
they  could  make  no  impression  on  it.  The  penguins  have  their 
own  peculiar  propensities,  while  the  seals  used  to  amaze  us  by 
their  callousness.  The  day  after  we  reached  Cape  Roberts  we 
killed  a  large  seal  and  cut  it  up  while  another  twenty  yards  away 
watched  us  quite  casually  and  did  not  budge  for  hours. 

There  was  nothing  much  to  do  on  the  cape.  It  was  triangular 
in  shape,  and  about  half  a  mile  long.  It  rose  about  50  feet  above 
the  sea  ice.  The  broad  base  of  the  triangle  was  covered  with 
snow  which  gradually  merged  into  the  Piedmont  Glacier.  There 
was  no  ice  wall  here,  so  that  the  glacier  was  presumably 'stag- 
nant at  this  corner.  The  great  granite  tors  of  the  cape  were 
all  flattened,  showing  that  they  had  been  planed  off  by  a 
former  extension  of  the  ice  sheet.  Debenham  spent  some  time 
making  a  detailed  plane  table  survey.  I  fixed  several  theodolite 
stations,  but  as  the  days  went  by  our  life  settled  into  a  monoto- 
nous round. 

I  cut  the  meals  down  to  two  a  day.  We  had  plenty  of  seal 
meat  and  biscuit,  but  all  the  other  stores  were  approaching  their 
last  week. 

We  used  to  have  supper  about  7  p.m.  Every  other  day  it 
consisted  of  a  half  ration  of  pemmican — for  though  seal  meat 
is  not  so  black  as  it's  painted  (and  it's  very  black  indeed),  yet 
we  had  eaten  little  else  for  a  month,  and  were  all  heartily  sick 
of  it.  Then  we  turned  in  and  used  to  yarn  or  read  till  about 
3  A.M.,  when  we  managed  to  get  to  sleep.  We  turned  out  at 
noon  and  had  a  biscuit  and  seal  lunch.  During  the  afternoon  we 
used  to  walk  over  the  cape  and  inspect  the  cracks  in  the  sea  ice. 
One  man  was  kept  fairly  busy  cutting  up  seal  meat,  while  the 
cook  coaxed  the  stove  to  cook  the  fry. 


i9i2]  A    BIRTHDAY   ODE  187 

Debenham  was  the  only  smoker,  and  certainly  found  tobacco 
a  great  solace.  I  had  brought  socks  instead  of  tobacco,  and  had 
looked  forward  to  jeering  at  him  when  his  tobacco  and  socks 
gave  out.  Unfortunately  our  socks  lasted  much  better  this  trip 
as  our  boots  were  stronger,  and  I  never  used  my  spare  socks ! 

Gran  started  a  drama — a  great  'nature  play,'  full  of  storms 
and  wrecks  with  a  strong  sub  stratum  of  melodrama.  It  was 
called  '  Tangholman  Lighthouse  '  and  we  used  to  urge  him  to  fill 
it  full  of  incident  and  cut  out  the  '  nature  '  part  of  it.  I  read 
'  Martin  Chuzzlewit '  for  the  nth  time  and  found  it,  as  always, 
very  interesting;  while  Forde  tackled  '  Incomparable  Bellairs  ' 
— a  book  which  charmed  Gran — but  luckily  Forde  made  it  last 
a  very  long  time. 

We  played  chess  with  our  cardboard  pieces.  I  think  we  were 
fairly  even,  though  Debenham  often  tried  risky  openings,  to  my 
advantage.  The  place  of  Seaman  Evans  as  Society  Entertainer 
was  taken  by  Gran.  His  varied  adventures  in  Arctic  seas,  among 
the  Andes,  in  Turkey,  Venezuela,  and  other  of  the  less  known 
regions  of  the  earth  interested  us  much.  He  was,  I  remember, 
very  anxious  to  experience  the  delights  of  '  station  life  '  as  por- 
trayed by  Debenham. 

January  20  was  Gran's  birthday.  I  was  sorry  I  couldn't  re- 
turn his  kindly  present  (of  Savoy  sauce,  &c),  but  I  told  him  I 
would  give  him  a  ship  during  the  day.  The  Sledge  Poet  con- 
tributed the  following  Birthday  Ode  dealing  with  Gran's  avowed 
Nietzschian  principles;  which  is  here  published — if  the  Editor 
thinks  fit — with  Gran's  gracious  permission. 

Ode  to  Tryggve 

On  his  23RD  Birthday,  Cape  Roberts 
(Chanted  at  ye  Full  Pemmican  Feast) 

0  Tryggve  Gran,  O  Tryggve  Gran, 

1  would  thou  wert  a  moral  man. 

And  yet  since  we 

(The  other  three) 
Are  just  as  moral  as  can  be, 
A  '  soupcon  de  diablerie  ' 
Improves  our  little  company. 

O  Tryggve  Gran,  a  holy  calm 
Is  most  essential  in  a  psalm ; 


1 88  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [January 

But  prose  should  be  a  thought  less  calmer 
When  elevated  into  drama. 

And  yet  though  we 

(The  other  three) 
Are  critical  to  a  degree, 
We  wish  success  some  future  day 
To  the  first  Polar  '  Nature  Play.' 

0  Tryggve  Gran,  thou  art  a  man 
Who  hath  compressed  within  a  span 
Of  three  and  twenty  years,  such  deeds 
That  hearing  which,  each  man's  heart  bleeds 

Among  us  three ; 
And  yet  though  we 
Are  kind  to  every  girl  we  see, 

1  have  no  doubt  each  lovely  creature 
Would  rather  help  you  follow  Nietzsche! 

0  Tryggve  Gran,  you  should  be  dead 
A-many  years  ago — instead 

Of  which,  he  saves  you  oft, 

1  That  Little  Cherub  up  Aloft.' 

And  therefore  we 

(The  other  three) 
In  this  new  principle  agree 
(As  with  your  luck  no  man  can  quarrel) 
'Twill  serve  us  best  to  be  unmoral\    !    ! 

I  was  just  writing  the  last  line  of  the  poem(?)  when  Gran 
yelled  out  '  Ship  Ho !  '  We  had  seen  ships  many  times  already, 
but  he  was  certain  of  this,  so  we  turned  out,  and  there  under  the 
fang  of  Erebus  we  could  see  some  topmasts.  Later  we  could 
make  out  three  masts  and  black  smoke — so  we  knew  it  was  the 
good  old  Terra  Nova,  and  not  the  Fram,  which  burned  smoke- 
less oil  fuel. 

We  set  about  elevating  our  flag  farther  up  the  glacier.  We 
took  it  up  a  long  way,  nearly  to  the  top  as  we  thought.  On  our 
return  we  saw  it  was  only  one  quarter  of  the  way  up,  a  good  ex- 
ample of  the  trickiness  of  snow  slopes  in  this  respect.  I  ar- 
ranged night-watches  to  observe  any  signals  or  sledge  parties, 
and  we  turned  in  hoping  to  be  aboard  in  twenty-four  hours. 

[Nay,  gentle  reader,  you  are  not  at  the  end  of  my  narrative; 
it  was  just  twenty-four  days  before  we  were  relieved!] 

Next  day  she  was  in  much  the  same  position,  about  twenty 
miles  away  across  the  screw  pack  and  broken  floes.     About  two 


i9i2]  WAITING    FOR    THE    SHIP  189 

miles  away  a  great  crack  stretched  north  and  south.  It  was  fully 
eight  miles  long,  and  seemed  to  presage  the  breaking  up  of  the 
sea  ice. 

On  the  22nd  we  could  not  see  the  ship.  A  strong  south  wind 
sprang  up  and  the  gradually  clouding  sky  seemed  to  portend  a 
blizzard.  '  The  stronger  the  better,'  I  wrote,  '  if  it  will  only  drive 
out  this  blessed  floe.'  We  took  a  few  photographs.  There  were 
two  Emperor  penguins  moulting  on  each  side  of  our  cape,  but 
Debenham  reported  that  they  were  too  frightful  to  photo! 
Forde  and  I  had  a  day  with  my  stereo-camera  taking  various 
interesting  details  around  the  cape — planed  granite  blocks,  pres- 
sure ice  in  the  bay;  and  then  the  Emperors,  awful  as  they  were, 
several  seal  and  berg  pictures,  &c. ;  but  sad  to  relate  all  these 
negatives  were  smashed  when  the  sledge  fell  over  the  glacier 
cliff. 

I  did  not  entertain  the  idea  of  trying  to  reach  Pennell  across 
the  screw  pack.  We  should  get  into  a  more  precarious  region 
each  mile,  and  we  could  not  communicate  with  the  ship  to  ensure 
her  awaiting  us.  Pennell  could  send  a  party,  with  safety  at 
either  end,  if  he  desired.  I  was,  however,  very  glad  later  to 
find  that  Pennell  also  considered  the  pack  absolutely  impossible 
for  sledging  from  the  ship. 

We  saw  her  during  the  next  few  days,  and  then  she  never 
showed  up  again. 

On  the  27th  a  blizzard  started,  which  we  hoped  would  move 
out  the  ice.  It  tore  our  sledge  flags  badly,  so  that  we  brought 
them  down  from  our  distress  signal  350  feet  up  the  glacier, 
leaving  only  the  big  depot  flag  there. 

It  was  very  trying  work  with  the  blubber  stove,  for  there 
was  no  shelter  on  the  cape.  When  there  was  any  wind  the 
flames  would  blow  out  of  the  door  and  give  no  heat  at  all.  The 
water  did  not  get  tepid  in  half  an  hour;  whereas  on  a  calm  day 
it  would  boil  in  twenty  minutes.  I  spent  an  hour  trying  to  cook 
the  fry  and  barely  succeeded  in  melting  the  fat.  We  decided 
that  the  stove  could  not  be  used  in  high  winds,  even  though  it 
was  in  a  sort  of  ice  cave,  and  the  cook  sat  in  the  door  to  keep  the 
wind  out ! 

Our  rations  had  been  cut  down  by  half  for  a  fortnight. 
Three  or  four  biscuits  a  day,  butter  every  other  day,  chocolate 
one    stick;    pemmican   one-eighth;     sugar    and   tea    two-thirds. 


1 90  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

However  we  had  plenty  of  seal  meat,  and  as  we  were  not  work- 
ing we  required  much  less  food. 

So  passed  several  days.  Gran  spent  all  one  afternoon  mak- 
ing chupatties.  The  lid  of  the  camera  box  was  his  pudding- 
board.  He  used  the  wheat  meal  '  thickers  '  for  dough,  and  col- 
lared our  allowance  of  raisins.  The  cakes  were  cut  out  with  the 
rim  of  a  cup,  and  then  fried  in  a  mixture  of  butter,  fat,  blubber, 
and  soot.  Anyhow  the  result  was  highly  successful,  though  the 
inside  was  somewhat  wet  and  the  whole  cake  I  should  now  con- 
sider distinctly  heavy! 

Each  day  we  started  the  last  bag  of  something  precious.  First 
the  pemmican,  then  the  chocolate,  then  the  butter.  Only  one 
seal  had  been  visible  for  some  days,  and  I  decreed  her  doom. 
She  lay  on  a  large  piece  of  ice  which  was  rising  and  falling  with 
the  swell.  We  reached  this  across  an  ice  island,  surging  about  in 
a  large  pool.  In  spite  of  all  this  movement,  no  more  of  the  ice 
moved  north  as  far  as  we  could  judge. 

On  the  evening  of  February  ist  I  held  a  council.  Captain 
Scott's  instructions  read:  'I  am  of  the  opinion  that  the  retreat 
should  not  be  commenced  until  the  bays  have  refrozen,  probably 
towards  the  end  of  March.  An  attempt  to  retreat  overland 
might  involve  you  in  difficulties — whereas  you  could  build  a 
stone  hut — provision  it  with  seal  meat  and  remain  in  safety  in 
any  convenient  station  on  the  coast.' 

However,  he  gave  me  permission  to  begin  the  retreat  in 
February  if  we  were  not  relieved  in  January,  and  I  began  to 
prepare  for  this  event,  for  I  felt  sure  we  could  traverse  the  pied- 
mont glacier. 

Cracks  seemed  to  be  spreading  on  the  sea  ice  even  while  one 
was  watching  it.  The  surging  ice-blocks  in  the  tide-crack,  now 
twenty  feet  wide,  rose  several  feet.  Now  and  again  a  huge 
shock,  as  of  a  big  rock  bumping  on  another,  announced  a  new 
crack,  while  a  constant  roar,  like  that  of  a  distant  lion,  announced 
the  periods  of  maximum  of  the  swell  rolling  in  from  twenty  miles 
away. 

On  February  3  Debenham,  Gran,  and  I  climbed  the  glacier 
slope  behind  our  camp  to  prospect  for  a  path.  We  roped  up  and 
proceeded  about  three  miles  southward,  keeping  well  behind  the 
crevasses.  These  are  numerous  on  the  steep  seaward  slope,  but 
we  met  with  none  on  the  fairly  level  ground,  though  we  could 


b\ 


SKETCH    MAP  TO    ILLUSTRATE 

eJOURJNTEYS     OF    THE 
STERN  GEOLOGICAL 


New  York  :  Dodd,  Mead  &  Cf 


SttwlorcLs  feogratphsEstatyLondons. 


lpany 


19X2]  MARCHING   AGAIN  191 

see  them  just  below  us.  The  surface  was  not  very  good,  usually 
two  inches  deep  in  snow  and  occasionally  a  foot  deep.  This 
did  not  promise  easy  sledging;  but  the  snow  was  dry  now,  and 
I  was  going  to  cut  down  the  weights  to  a  minimum. 

We  could  see  open  water  about  twenty  miles  off,  but  a  huge 
mass  of  ice  pack  was  apparent  as  far  north  as  we  could  see. 
There  seemed  to  be  a  broad  belt  of  pack,  at  least  sixty  miles 
long,  which  was  quite  absent  in  January  1902. 

Obviously  our  exploration  of  Terra  Nova  Bay  was  impos- 
sible now,  and  it  looked  as  if  the  ship  would  never  reach  us  at 
Cape  Roberts.  With  good  luck  we  might  cross  the  piedmont 
glacier  to  Cape  Bernacchi  in  a  few  days,  and  Pennell  might  find 
it  easier  to  reach  us  there,  while  we  should  at  any  rate  be  nearer 
to  headquarters.  There  was  also  a  week's  food  there,  and  we 
had  now  only  a  fortnight's  sledging  stores  left. 

On  February  4,  Gran  and  I  explored  the  sea  ice  below  the 
piedmont  for  about  four  miles  to  the  southward.  We  passed 
through  the  fifteen  bergs  in  the  little  bay,  and  then  got  among 
the  screw  pack.  This  was  covered  with  snow  and  afforded  us 
extremely  heavy  going,  as  may  be  imagined.  Near  the  shore 
was  a  perfect  network  of  new  cracks  with  the  ice  '  working  '  all 
the  time.  Below  the  glacier  wall  was  a  deep  tide  crack  four  feet 
wide,  but  where  some  ice  blocks  had  fallen  in  we  managed  to  get 
across  to  fixed  ice.  As  a  result  of  this  journey  I  decided  to 
march  first  along  the  sea  ice,  and  then  climb  up  the  piedmont  at 
this  point. 

Next  morning  I  wrote  a  long  letter  to  Pennell  which  we  all 
signed.  We  made  a  depot  on  the  highest  point  of  the  cape,  and 
fixed  a  flag  alongside  with  the  letter  in  a  little  tin  match-box.  The 
journal  for  Captain  Scott  I  left  in  the  food  cairn  in  my  ditty-bag. 
I  remorselessly  weeded  out  every  one's  gear.  We  took  nothing 
but  what  we  stood  up  in,  and  our  notes  and  the  instruments. 
Luckily  most  of  Debenham's  and  all  Gran's  negatives  were  films, 
but  I  had  to  leave  nearly  all  my  plates  and  my  cherished  Brown- 
ing. I  knew  we  had  some  bad  crevassed  country  to  traverse — 
thirty  miles  of  this — and  then  I  expected  thirty  miles  of  coast 
work,  largely  over  moraine  and  rock,  where  we  should  have 
to  portage  the  sledge  and  all  our  gear  on  our  backs.  This  would 
bring  us  to  Butter  Point,  whence  our  route  was  the  same  as  in  the 
previous  summer.     With  a  light  sledge  it  was  just  possible  we 


1 92  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

might  be  able  to  raise  it  if  it  slipped  down  a  crevasse;  and  this 
was  quite  a  probable  event,  for  in  traversing  along  a  piedmont 
glacier  the  party  moves  parallel  to  the  crevasses.  One  thus 
reaches  them  imperceptibly,  and  the  whole  party  with  its  outfit 
may  be  marching  over  a  crevasse,  whereas  in  crossing  them  at 
right  angles  this  is  rarely  the  case. 

We  turned  our  backs  finally  on  Cape  Roberts  at  1 1  a.m.  on 
February  5.  Our  flag  waved  bravely,  and  below  it  was  the  cairn 
of  stones  covering  the  food  left  there  by  Scott's  orders.  If 
we  had  to  return  it  would  give  us  a  breathing  space ;  but  I  never 
saw  the  cape  again.  For  many  months  the  flag  was  left  in  soli- 
tude. The  screw  pack  never  broke  adrift  that  winter.  In  the 
next  spring  six  desperate  men  sledging  southward,  to  more  en- 
durable— though,  as  they  thought,  no  less  solitary — quarters, 
here  found  the  first  news  of  the  main  party.  Our  depot  possibly 
saved  Petty  officer  Browning's  life.  It  certainly  gave  the  North- 
ern Party  their  first  bearable  day  for  many  months.  Brave  old 
flag — it  hangs  in  Tewkesbury  in  Priestley's  home,  and  there  my 
old  Browning  was  restored  to  me  after  many  months ! 

So  we  marched  on.  We  were  all  stiff  and  out  of  training, 
and  the  sledge  did  not  pull  easily,  but  we  reached  the  tide  crack 
and  crossed  it  much  more  readily  than  I  expected.  After  lunch 
we  pulled  up  the  steep  slope  of  the  glacier  and  to  our  delight 
found  the  surface  grow  harder  almost  every  hour.  But  other 
troubles  were  upon  us.  So  much  so  that  for  three  days  I  felt 
it  doubtful  if  anyone  would  ever  read  my  diary!  However,  on 
the  evening  of  the  8th  I  wrote  up  the  5th  (and  succeeding  days) 
as  follows : 

1  Then  quite  suddenly  we  came  on  huge  crevasses  all  round 
the  shop.  Some  open — which  I  took  care  not  to  keep  too  close 
to,  and  others  bridged.  They  seemed  too  wide  to  do  anything 
with,  but  after  cautioning  the  others  to  tread  quietly,  I  prodded 
across  safely,  though  the  ice  axe  pushed  in  all  its  length  easily. 
Then  the  others  followed  and  the  sledge  after.  Gran  fell  in  at 
the  near  edge  and  saw  the  straight  wall.  Several  of  these  were 
over  20  feet  wide,  but  we  had  to  chance  them,  and  I  tested  them 
all  before  the  sledge  started.  Then  we  marched  along  between 
two  fairly  visible  ones  and  luckily  they  didn't  join.  The  surface 
got  flatter  and  they  died  out  gradually,  so  that  we  made  fair 
progress.     We  came  to  another  enclosed  snow  basin,  and  I  felt 


i9i2]  ON    THE    PIEDMONT  193 

sure  the  seaward  slope  would  be  safer.  So  it  was,  though  Forde 
went  down  a  small  one.  We  pulled  along  this  up  to  a  sort  of 
col  about  8  miles  from  Cape  Roberts,  and  here,  as  we  were  well 
beyond  the  mouth  of  the  Big  Valley,  we  camped. 

'  My  only  fear  now  was  that  bad  weather  might  cover  the 
glacier  with  soft  snow,  for  I  felt  that  all  the  big  crevasses  would 
be  lidded  and  the  little  ones  could  hardly  swallow  the  lot  of  us.' 

Next  morning  we  made  the  harness  traces  longer,  so  that 
only  one  man  at  a  time  need  cross  even  a  wide  crevasse.  We 
had  to  traverse  the  mouth  of  another  large  valley  glacier.  Three 
of  these  debouched  on  the  piedmont  glacier  from  the  Western 
Mountains,  and  the  pressure  from  the  northernmost  (the  Deben- 
ham  Glacier  was  responsible  for  the  crevasses  of  March  5. 
The  second  valley  glacier  was  not  so  large,  but  we  anticipated 
trouble.  We  had  a  stiff  pull  uphill  for  three-quarters  of  a  mile, 
but  some  of  the  snow  was  so  hard  that  the  sledge  runners  made 
no  mark!  This  was  an  ideal  surface,  for  one's  feet  did  not  slip 
on  it,  though  occasionally  the  sledge  skidded.  We  were  about 
700  feet  above  the  sea  here  and  entered  a  col  just  below  a  huge 
snow  hill. 

1  Afterwards  we  were  cutting  around  the  hill  aforesaid  when 
suddenly  appeared  many  crevasses.  So  we  deviated  abruptly  and 
ascended  the  hill  sharply.  We  encountered  three,  into  one  of 
which  I  fell,  but  they  were  not  very  wide.  The  moral  of  this  is, 
Don't  go  for  the  break  of  a  hill  facing  and  near  the  sea,  but 
stick  to  humdrum  grades  if  possible;  if  not,  still  don't  go  for 
the  break  of  a  hill !  ' 

The  somewhat  frivolous  tone  of  the  above  note  is  evidence 
that  it  was  written  when  we  had  traversed  the  worst  of  the  pied- 
mont. It  was  always  the  case  '  down  South.'  One  never  got 
photographs  or  '  instantaneous  pen  pictures  '  of  anything  really 
exciting.  It  was  always  a  case  of  'Get  a  move  on,  and  get  out 
of  this  good  and  quick,'  so  that  one's  diary  lost  most  where  it 
would  have  been  most  interesting. 

We  were  now  behind  Dunlop  Island  and  about  1250  feet 
up  the  piedmont.  We  were  astonished  to  find  that  the  floe  had 
all  broken  up  to  south'ard.  Long  curved  cracks  parallel  to  the 
coast  marked  where  pieces  were  continually  floating  off.  We 
congratulated  ourselves  on  our  safe  position  on  the  piedmont, 
for  we  should  have  sledged  into  this  without  knowing  it,  had  we 

vol.  11— 13 


I94  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

continued  much  farther  on  the  sea  ice.  Small  bergs  looking  just 
like  white  yachts  dotted  the  open  water,  which  seemed  to  extend 
south  to  Castle  Rock.  There  was  no  sign  of  the  Terra  Nova. 
We  began  to  think  she  had  come  to  grief,  for  Pennell  knew  we 
were  free  to  move  off  on  February  I. 

After  supper  Debenham  got  out  his  plane  table  and  contin- 
ued his  survey.  He  was  at  first  much  puzzled  by  the  position 
of  his  station  on  the  stranded  Glacier  Tongue  to  the  south-east. 
He  realised  soon,  however,  that  it  had  twisted  round,  and  was 
even  now  preparing  to  continue  its  journey  to  the  Nirvana  of 
warm  northern  waters. 

We  had  been  blessed  with  sunshine  the  last  few  days.  I  do 
not  believe  we  should  have  managed  to  dodge  the  crevasses  other- 
wise, for  in  dull  weather  you  cannot  tell  any  difference  between 
a  ten-foot  hollow  or  a  ten-foot  hummock  when  it  is  only  a  yard 
or  two  away.  However,  as  a  result  of  the  sunshine,  Forde  had 
a  bad  touch  of  snow-blindness.  Debenham  got  out  the  medical 
chest.  He  ground  up  some  ZnS04,  picked  it  up  on  a  paint-brush, 
and  dropped  it  in  the  corner  of  Forde's  eye.  Later  in  the  night 
I  gave  Forde  another  dose,  for  the  pain  is  pretty  considerable. 

The  next  day  my  right  eye  was  sore  and  watering  in  spite 
of  the  amber  glasses,  and  I  feared  I  was  to  become  a  patient  also. 
We  plugged  along  over  an  absolutely  level  snow  plain,  where 
Debenham,  without  warning,  dropped  into  a  crevasse  over  which 
I  had  crossed  without  puncturing  the  lid. 

In  the  afternoon  my  eyes  gave  out,  and  I  put  bandages  on 
the  right  eye,  and  gave  up  the  lead  to  Debenham.  It  was  an  as- 
tonishing relief  to  cease  from  staring  at  the  glaring  surface,  and 
either  pull  along  with  shut  eyes  or  keep  one  eye  on  the  gratefully 
dirty  back  of  Debenham's  white  woolen  jacket! 

Debenham  led  us  safely  past  three  huge  crevasses,  and  we 
halted  for  a  spell  among  a  cluster  of  smaller  ones.  That  even- 
ing we  climbed  up  the  snow  hill  behind  Gneiss  Point  about  1350 
feet  above  the  sea,  and  as  we  had  now  passed  the  third  valley 
glacier,  I  felt  we  had  finished  with  the  crevasses  for  the  time 
being.  We  camped  on  hard  snow,  and  Debenham  treated  me 
for  snow-blindness.  The  zinc  sulphate  may  truthfully  be  de- 
scribed as  an  '  eye-opener,'  but  later  the  cocaine  in  the  mixture 
calms  things  down!  You  are  advised  'to  keep  your  face  cool,' 
but  unfortunately  I  had  to  keep  my  head  in  the  bag  to  get  warm. 


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i9x2]  A    MIRAGE  195 

However,  Forde  was  pretty  right  next  day  and  my  eyes  soon 
stopped  aching,  though  everything  appeared  double  for  many 
hours ! 

On  the  8th  we  reached  the  land  near  Cape  Bernacchi.  There 
was  a  steep  ice  slope  200  feet  high  at  an  angle  of  300.  Luckily 
it  was  much  honeycombed  and  sun-eaten.  We  put  grummets 
(rope  brakes  on  the  sledge  and  managed  to  get  it  down  by 
1.30  P.M.  We  had  a  very  cheerful  lunch,  for  we  knew  the 
depot  was  only  a  few  miles  south.  Then  we  found  an  ice-foot 
all  the  way  along  the  edge  of  the  rocks  and  moraine  which  led 
us  right  to  the  Bernacchi  cairn.  This  was  a  regular  ice  pathway 
about  20  yards  wide.  It  was  due  to  sea  ice  which  had  become 
cemented  to  the  shore,  the  tide  crack  being  farther  away  from 
the  rocks  and  defining  that  part  of  the  floe  which  had  lately 
drifted  away  to  sea. 

No  one  had  visited  our  depot.  New  Harbour  was  full  of 
new  broken  floe,  but  a  fine  ice-foot  seemed  to  promise  well  for 
our  next  march. 

We  stayed  a  day  at  Cape  Bernacchi,  for  I  wished  to  get  a 
good  station  for  the  triangulation  of  this  coast.  Gran  and  I 
took  the  theodolite  to  the  top  of  a  hill  2900  feet  high  at  the 
north-east  end  of  Dry  Valley.  We  named  this  Hjort's  Hill  in 
honour  of  the  maker  of  our  trusty  primus  lamp.  As  we  were 
climbing  this  hill  Gran  swore  he  could  see  the  ship  off  Cape 
Evans  through  the  binoculars.  It  seemed  clear  to  me  also — 
smoke,  cross-trees,  hull,  and  3  masts,  but  after  an  hour  or  so  we 
decided  it  was  only  a  miraged  crack  in  the  Barne  glacier.  Our 
disappointment  was  very  keen,  though  I  am  now  not  so  sure  that 
we  did  not  really  see  the  ship,  some  forty  miles  away.  We  could 
see  the  twenty-foot  debris  cones  behind  the  hut  quite  easily  on 
a  clear  day. 

I  wrote  the  usual  letter  to  Pennell.  I  had  left  two  in  Granite 
Harbour  and  two  on  the  piedmont  now,  though  it  did  not  look 
as  if  any  would  ever  be  read.  All  through  the  10th  we  skirted 
New  Harbour,  finding  a  fairly  feasible  ice-foot  between  the 
granite-strewn  slopes  and  the  open  water.  We  came  across  a 
Spratt's  biscuit  box  here — which  was  evidently  left  by  the  1902 
expedition.  We  saved  a  considerable  detour  by  crossing  the  head 
of  the  harbour  on  the  sea  ice  and  camped  below  the  Kukri  Hills, 
where  I  halted  rather  early  to  get  a  round  of  angles.     We  were 


I96  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

held  up  here  all  next  day  by  a  snowstorm,  which  we  spent  reading 
and  sewing. 

On  the  1 2th  we  rounded  the  Kukri  Hills,  and  when  the  ice- 
foot petered  out  we  were  luckily  able  to  continue  on  the  sea  ice. 
We  had  lunch  amid  a  colony  of  over  forty  seals,  and  then  reached 
the  southern  side  of  the  Ferrar  Glacier,  where  we  camped  on  a 
rather  wet  and  muddy  heap  of  *  road  metal '  moraine. 

We  were  now  safely  round  New  Harbour,  and  curiously 
enough  crossed  the  sea  ice  at  the  mouth  of  the  Ferrar  on  the 
same  day  of  the  year  as  when  we  nearly  went  out  to  sea  on  our 
first  sledge  journey.  Henceforward  we  knew  our  route.  We  had 
plenty  of  food  at  the  Butter  Point  depot  which  we  reached  that 
evening,  and  knew  we  could  reach  the  old  Discovery  hut  before 
the  end  of  the  month. 

This  depot  had  been  blown  over  and  wrecked  generally.  We 
took  some  pemmican,  butter,  and  chocolate,  and  next  day  pro- 
ceeded south  along  the  Butter  Point  piedmont,  leaving  another 
note  for  Pennell.  The  surface  was  much  better  than  the  preced- 
ing year,  but  curiously  enough  we  found  quite  a  number  of  small 
crevasses.  Debenham  and  Forde  fell  in  together  in  one  of  these, 
and  the  burly  Irishman  jammed  so  tightly,  it  was  quite  a  business 
pulling  him  out  of  it!  In  the  evening  we  reached  the  Strand 
Moraines.  These  are  great  piles  of  ancient  silt,  gravel,  and 
erratic  blocks  which  were  dropped  here  by  the  ancestor  of  the 
present  Koettlitz  Glacier.  At  the  southern  end  of  these  moraines 
— which  were  several  miles  long — was  quite  a  large  lake.  We 
tobogganed  down  to  this  and  across  to  a  nice  little  gravelly  delta 
just  made  for  the  tent.  We  found  that  the  open  water  reached 
just  to  this  point,  the  sound  still  being  frozen  to  south'ard, 
though  obviously  breaking  away  in  great  sheets.  I  wrote  that 
night:  'No  Terra  Nova.  We  should  have  been  picked  up  at 
Evans  Coves  (Terra  Nova  Bay)  to-morrow/  We  had  the 
choice  of  two  routes  now.  Either  to  cross  the  snout  of  the  Blue 
Glacier,  or  to  take  to  the  sea  ice  and  coast  round  the  latter.  We 
had  done  the  former  and  knew  it  would  only  take  a  day.  The 
latter  might  be  quicker,  though  a  great  calved  berg  blocked  the 
route  about  two  miles  ahead.  Debenham  preferred  the  glacier, 
the  other  two  the  sea  ice.  I  made  a  bet  with  Gran  that  we 
couldn't  get  the  sledge  between  the  calved  berg  and  the  glacier 
without  unloading  it.     This  had  a  rather  interesting  outcome. 


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i9»]  THE   SHIP  197 

I  finally  decided  to  keep  to  land  ice  on  the  principle  of  the  '  Devil 
you  know  being  preferable  to  the  Devil  you  don't/ 

It  was  annoying  to  find  that  the  Blue  Glacier  had  so  com- 
pletely changed  its  complexon  in  the  twelve  months.  In  place 
of  clear  blue  ice  where  one  could  see  every  crevasse,  it  was  one 
uniform  sheet  of  smooth  snow,  and  we  soon  began  to  fall  into 
the  crevasses.  In  a  very  short  time  we  had  all  been  in  a  couple 
of  times,  and  it  was  evidently  an  unhealthy  region  for  sledging. 
I  deviated  to  the  edge  of  the  glacier  to  try  and  lower  the  sledge 
on  to  the  sea  ice;  and  we  soon  got  abreast  of  the  calved  berg, 
where  we  halted  a  few  minutes. 

Away  to  the  south-east  we  could  see  a  blizzard  coming  up, 
and  I  wanted  to  get  a  snug  camp  in  the  gullies  south  of  the  Blue 
Glacier.  We  had  an  argument  as  to  who  had  won  the  bet,  for 
there  was  a  high  jumble  of  ice  where  the  calf  jammed  the  parent 
glacier.  The  other  two  decided  in  my  favour,  and  so  we  pushed 
off  on  the  top  of  the  glacier  edge  to  the  wished-for  camp.  Gran 
was  dissatisfied  with  the  court's  decision  and  kept  glancing  back 
to  the  scene  under  discussion.  Just  as  we  were  dipping  down 
the  slope  which  cut  off  all  view  to  northward  he  yelled  out: 
1  Ship  Ho !  ' — and  there  she  was  over  the  top  of  the  black 
moraines. 

1  We  turned  back  good  and  quick  to  retraverse  the  crevasses, 
for  she  was  four  miles  off  and  we  were  afraid  might  miss  us,  as 
a  snowstorm  was  brewing  in  the  east.  She  steamed  along  past 
the  berg  and  out  along  the  floe.  We  pulled  back  hard,  crossing 
crevasses  carelessly,  but  not  falling  in  much,  and  finally  could 
make  out  that  she  had  a  flag  on  the  gaff,  apparently  recognising 
us.  We  kept  along  the  edge  of  the  glacier  till  we  could  find  a 
place  to  get  down.  Here  was  a  drop  of  30  feet,  almost  vertical, 
with  a  big  tide  crack  and  a  tide  pool  at  the  bottom.  Gran  went 
down  first,  and  then  I  got  down  half-way.  Unluckily  as  we  were 
lowering  the  sledge  Forde  was  pulled  over  by  his  harness  and 
fell  right  on  to  Gran,  who  was  squashed  into  the  snow  while  the 
sledge  came  down  on  top  of  us.  It  nearly  broke  in  the  middle; 
however,  we  lugged  it  over  to  the  ice  and  set  off  hot-foot  over 
the  two  miles  of  ice.  The  ship  now  anchored  near  the  floe  and 
four  men  came  to  meet  us.  They  harnessed  up  and  told  us  the 
news.  We  heard  that  the  Southern  party  were  going  very  well, 
that  there  was  no  sign  of  Amundsen,  and  that  there  had  been  no 


198  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

accidents  of  importance.'  Also  that  they  had  not  been  able  to 
communicate  with  Cape  Evans  until  a  week  before,  and  had  been 
unloading  stores  every  available  moment  before  they  came  over 
to  search  for  us.  And  then  the  world's  news  at  first  hearing  made 
us  feel  safer  in  the  Antarctic.  The  disruption  of  China,  the 
Franco-German-English  trouble  in  Morocco,  the  Italians  and 
Turks  in  Tripoli,  and  the  great  strikes  in  England.  We  had 
missed  an  eventful  year  during  our  sojourn  in  the  peaceful  re- 
gions of  the  South. 

It  was  no  easy  business  reaching  the  ship.  The  sea  ice  was 
rapidly  breaking  up,  and  moving  off  to  the  northward  in  great 
rectangular  fragments.  Finally  the  ship  butted  a  cake  of  floe 
towards  the  fixed  ice  and  held  it  there  long  enough  to  get  the 
sledge  over. 

Once  on  board  we  made  a  dive  for  our  mail.  A  pillow  case 
full  for  each  of  us,  and  all  home  news  satisfactory. 

We  had  been  picked  up  just  a  month  later  than  the  date  fixed 
by  Captain  Scott.  We  were  now  only  a  few  hours'  sail  from 
Cape  Evans,  and  looked  forward  to  a  change  and  the  comforts 
of  the  hut.  But  the  blizzard  we  had  been  watching  caught  us 
and  was  succeeded  by  many  others,  and  not  for  ten  days  did  we 
get  near  the  hut.  In  fact,  during  the  ensuing  three  weeks  there 
were  only  three  hours  in  which  we  could  get  into  touch  with 
headquarters,  before  we  turned  our  faces  to  the  north. 

So  ends  my  narrative.  During  the  six  months  that  we  had 
spent  sledging  we  had  mapped  a  hundred  miles  of  coast  and 
hinterland,  our  detailed  surveys  extending  in  places  over  thirty 
miles  from  the  sea.  Our  general  scientific  results  are  briefly  de- 
scribed in  the  final  chapters  of  the  book.  All  our  collections  were 
safely  brought  back  to  England  in  the  Terra  Nova  in  19 13. 

What  is  the  best  personal  result  of  our  sledge  journeys?  A 
group  of  friends  who  are  closer  than  brothers.  Here's  luck  to 
my  mates — to  Debenham,  Wright,  and  Gran! 

Griffith  Taylor. 


SPRING   DEPOT   JOURNEY 

By  Commander  Edward  R.  G.  R.  Evans,  R.N. 

On  September  9,  191 1,  the  depot  party,  consisting  of  Lieutenant 
Evans,  Gran,  and  Forde,  left  Cape  Evans  to  dig  out  the  depots 
at  Safety  Camp  and  Corner  Camp.  As  later  on  the  dog  teams 
were  to  take  out  quantities  of  stores  to  Corner  Camp  it  was 
deemed  advisable  to  visit  this  spot,  and  if  necessary  put  new  flags 
to  mark  it,  and  build  up  the  cairn. 

The  party  started  at  8  a.m.  on  ski,  in  beautifully  fine,  clear 
weather.  We  saw  remarkable  earth  shadows  on  the  clouds  over 
Erebus. 

Nelson  came  with  us  to  Glacier  Tongue,  and  while  we  had 
four  men  we  travelled  at  3  miles  per  hour;  directly  he  left  our 
speed  decreased  materially. 

There  is  no  doubt  a  four-man  team  has  enormous  advantages 
over  one  of  three.  The  increase  in  permanent  weights  is  very 
slight,  consisting  only  of  a  sleeping-bag  and  a  small  personal 
bag;  the  only  disadvantage  is  the  difference  in  the  time  taken 
to  cook  meals.  When  marching  against  time  the  three-man  unit 
saves  nearly  half  an  hour  a  day. 

We  passed  Meares  driving  home  from  Hut  Point,  but  he 
was  half  a  mile  inshore  and  didn't  come  out  on  account  of  the 
dogs,  who  are  very  hard  to  control  if  they  get  near  another 
sledge  team. 

There  was  no  object  in  camping  for  lunch  on  the  sea  ice,  and 
we  pushed  on  to  Hut  Point  for  lunch.  The  distance  by  sledge- 
meter  was  13  miles  300  yards  (statute  15  miles  264  yards). 
We  found  Meares  had  left  everything  at  Hut  Point  in  splendid 
order,  and  we  soon  had  the  blubber  stove  going  and  a  meal 
cooked.  At  5.15,  it  being  quite  fine,  we  repacked  sledge  and 
marched  4  miles  out  towards  Safety  Camp.  We  stopped  about 
9  p.m.,  had  supper,  and  turned  into  our  bags. 

Our  camp  was  on  the  sea  ice,  and  we  noticed  an  extraordinary 
change  in  the  temperature  after  rounding  Cape  Armitage;    the 


200  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [September 

thermometer  at  Hut  Point  showed  -  21  °  and  on  camping  it  was 
-420,  with  a  sharp  biting  breeze  coming  away  from  the  Barrier. 
Minimum  temp.  -  45  °. 

On  the  following  day  we  started  off  in  a  light  easterly  wind, 
temperature  -36-5°,  and  hauled  our  sledge  to  Safety  Camp, 
which  is  distant  from  Cape  Evans  22  miles  452  yards  (statute). 
We  dug  out  the  depot,  tallied  stores,  and  then  put  up  a  wind 
recorder  of  Simpson's. 

It  was  interesting  to  see  how  Safety  Camp  had  drifted  up 
during  the  winter.  It  took  many  hours  to  dig  it  out,  and  al- 
though this  depot  contained,  amongst  other  things,  73  bales  of 
fodder,  each  of  107  lbs.  weight,  the  snow  had  completely  cov- 
ered it. 

After  lunch  we  took  6  tins  of  paraffin  from  here  and  marched 
8  miles  641  yards  between  5.30  and  8.30  P.M.  At  9  p.m.  the 
thermometer  showed  45-2°  below  zero. 

The  temperature  fell  a  good  deal  during  the  night  and  we 
could  scarcely  sleep.  Gran,  using  an  eiderdown  bag  inside  his 
sleeping-bag,  was  warmer  than  the  other  two  of  us,  but  later 
on  our  journey  the  eiderdown  bag  was  like  a  board  and  he  had 
very  little  if  any  advantage  from  it. 

On  September  11,  at  7  a.m.,  the  temperature  was  -  58-2°,  the 
minimum  for  the  night  being  -  62-3°. 

At  9  a.m.  we  started  off,  and  marched  5^  miles  by  sledge- 
meter  (statute  6  miles  530  yards). 

We  built  cairns  at  every  night  and  lunch  camp,  and  small 
1  top-hats  '  whenever  we  had  a  halt.  Corner  Camp  is  very  diffi- 
cult to  find,  as  landmarks  are  so  often  obscured  by  cloud  and  drift 
in  this  vicinity.    One  of  our  objects  was  to  mark  the  track  clearly. 

We  stopped  for  lunch  at  2 ;  the  land  was  entirely  obscured 
by  mist,  although  the  sky  was  clear  overhead.     Thermometer 

at -43°. 

The  surface  in  the  forenoon  though  variable  was  fairly  good; 
we  marched  another  5%  miles  by  our  sledgemeter  during  the 
afternoon  and  camped  at  8.30,  the  weather  gradually  becoming 
worse,  wind  from  W.S.W.,  with  low  drift.  By  the  time  our 
tent  was  pitched  a  fair  blizzard  was  on  us.    Temperature  -  34-5  °. 

By  10  P.M.  the  tent  was  well  drifted  up,  weather  squally,  but 
all  snug  inside.  We  had  with  us  the  new  pattern  double  tent, 
which  is  a  horrible  thing,  it  shortens  the  space  down  so,  and  is 


i9ii]  CAIRN    BURIED    IN    SNOW  201 

the  most  trying  thing  to  spread  in  a  breeze.  To  quote  my  diary: 
'  There  is  a  sharp  difference  of  opinion  as  to  the  value  of  this 
invention.  Naturally  the  maker,  Petty  Officer  Evans,  is  very 
proud  of  it,  but  the  other  seamen  hate  it.  However  we  shall 
give  it  a  good  test  now,  likewise  the  ski-shoes,  which  I  like  im- 
mensely if  they  are  the  right  size;  if  too  big  they  are  trodden 
down  and  spoilt  very  soon,  but  if  too  small  one's  toes  get  frost- 
bitten where  the  shoes  pinch.' 

Tuesday,  September  12,  191 1. — Blizzard  continued  till 
8  A.M.,  when  wind  decreased  to  force  5 ;  it  however  still  con- 
tinued to  drift  until  10  A.M.,  when  wind  dropped  to  force  3, 
weather  overcast  and  snowing.  Temperature  —  190;  the  mini- 
mum for  the  night  being  -400.  The  wind  increased  to  force  6 
with  drift  at  1 1  A.M.,  but  by  2  P.M.  it  was  fine  enough  to  make 
a  start,  which  we  did  in  a  biting  cold  wind.  We  built  a  good  cairn 
here,  but  it  was  cold  work. 

We  marched  this  day  till  8.30  P.M.,  when  it  was  very  nearly 
dark  and  very  misty.  Surface  bad  after  the  blizzard;  we  cov- 
ered 7  miles  783  yards    (statute).     Temperature  on  camping 

-46°. 

September  13,  191 1. — The  diary  continues:  Having  shiv- 
ered in  my  bag  all  night,  at  5  o'clock  I  told  the  others  to  get  up, 
both  of  them  being  awake.  We  cooked  a  meal  and  prepared  to 
scout  for  Corner  Camp.  On  going  out  to  take  the  meteorological 
observations  found  min.  temp.  —73*3°.  Present  temp.  —  580.  I 
don't  think  anyone  was  surprised,  as  it  was  very  cold  during  the 
night.  I  got  a  glimpse  of  Observation  Hill  and  the  sun,  and 
I  found  the  bearing  of  the  former  was  N.  70  W.  instead  of 
N.  68  W.,  so  we  struck  S.S.W.  for  a  short  distance  and  then 
saw  the  flagstaff  of  Corner  Camp.  On  arriving  at  the  depot 
found  the  whole  cairn  buried  thus : 


so  dug  out  all  the  forenoon  and  eventually  got  all  stores  out  and 
tallied.  We  left  one  tin  of  biscuits  here,  two  bags  of  treacle,  six 
bags  of  butter,  and  six  tins  of  paraffin.     We  put  all  biscuit  tins 


202 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


[September 


and  sacks  of  oats  on  end  on  the  top  of  the  cairn  we  built, 
complete  tally  of  stores  is : 


Th( 


Sledging  biscuits  .    .  9  cases 

Butter       14  bags 

Cheese 6    " 

Tea 2  tins 

Fodder J^  bale 

Pemmican      ....  6  bags 

Cereals 6    " 

The  cairn  is  now  like  this : 


Cocoa 6  bags 

Oil       11  cans 

Oats 3  sacks 

Sugar      6  bags 

Chocolate 6    " 

Raisins 6    " 

Treacle 2    " 


We  left  at  5  p.m.  and  started  to  march  to  Hut  Point — non- 
stop run — as  I  wished  to  get  my  gear  nicely  dried  at  C.  Evans 
before  going  out  with  Meares  on  the  20th.  We  had  no  wish  to 
remain  at  Corner  Camp,  as  all  the  time  we  were  digging  it  was 
drifting  a  little  and  blowing  about  5,  temperature  -320 — about 
all  we  could  *  stick.'  After  striking  camp  we  marched  till  10.30 
p.m.,  doing  9-5  miles  by  sledgemeter.  When  4  miles  from  Corner 
Camp  the  wind  dropped  to  a  calm.  At  10.30  had  pemmican  and 
tea,  then  at  midnight  started  off,  and  steering  by  stars  kept  on 
a  W.N.W.  course  till  about  5  a.m.  (September  14),  when  we 
had  a  light  breakfast  of  tea  and  biscuit.  Off  again  before  6,  and 
continued  marching  until  we  came  to  the  edge  of  the  Barrier 
about  12.45.  We  did  not  stop  at  Safety  Camp,  but  marched 
straight  to  Hut  Point,  arriving  at  3  P.M.  At  the  hut  we  had  a 
meal  of  tea  and  chapatties  which  Forde  made.  We  ate  steadily 
till  about  5.30,  and  then  discussed  marching  to  C.  Evans.  Had 
we  started  we  might  have  got  in  by  3  A.M.,  but  not  before;  but 
we  had  marched  all  through  one  night,  and  besides  digging  out 
Corner  Camp  we  had  marched  30  miles  40  yds.  by  sledgemeter, 


LIEUT.   E.   R.   G.   R.   EVANS  SURVEYING  WITH  THE  FOUR-INCH  THEODOLITE 
WHICH  WAS  USED    TO    LOCATE    THE    SOUTH    POLE 


I9i 


THE    MARCHING   AVERAGE 


203 


equal  to  34-6  stat.  miles,  which  on  top  of  a  day's  work  was  good 
enough  for  me.  We  therefore  prepared  the  hut  for  the  night. 
Turned  in  about  7  and  soon  fell  asleep.  Gran  woke  Forde  and 
myself  about  10  p*m.  with  cocoa  and  porridge,  both  of  which 
were  splendid.    We  then  slept  till  9  a.m.  on  the  15th. 

September  15,  19 12. — Turned  out  at  9  A.M.,  cooked  a  fine 
breakfast,  and  then  washed  all  the  cooking  gear,  cleared  out  the 
hut,  got  on  our  marching  gear,  and  at  2  p.m.  started  off  for  C. 
Evans.  We  had  an  easy  march  on  the  sea  ice  and  arrived  back 
at  9.25  p.m.  Found  that  the  sledge  party  Capt.  Scott  is  taking 
W.  had  left  that  morning,  and  that  I  was  not  going  on  my  sec- 
ond trip  to  Corner  Camp  as  the  dogs  will  not  start  for  another 
month.  I  found  by  comparison  that  my  watch  had  lost  two  sec- 
onds since  I  left  nearly  a  week  ago.  Turned  in  about  1 1.30  p.m., 
and  was  soon  snoring. 

Marching  average: 


Sat. 

Sepl 

:.  9, 

whole  da 

Sun. 

u 

10, 

half       " 

Mon. 

u 

ii} 

whole    " 

Tues. 

u 

12, 

half       " 

Wed. 

<< 

n, 

whole    " 

Thu. 

u 

H> 

a            u 

Fri. 

u 

*5> 

half      " 

m. 

yds. 

19 

II86 

8 

641 

12 

1588 

7 

783 

3 

1786 

34 

IO4O 

IS 

264 

102 


248 


.  Time  out  of  hut,  6y2  days.     Allow  off  for  two  diggings  and 
blizzard  3^  days,  equals  5  days'  marching. 


E.  R.  E.  Evans. 


THE  LAST  YEAR  AT  CAPE  EVANS 
By  Surgeon  E.  L.  Atkinson,  R.N. 

CHAPTER   I 

In  writing  the  record  of  the  second  year  I  must  give  all  credit 
to  A.  Cherry-Garrard.  It  is  entirely  from  his  diaries  and  from 
the  official  diary  kept  by  him  that  these  records  are  compiled. 
To  make  matters  clear  it  would  be  as  well  to  go  over  the  events 
after  the  return  of  the  first  Southern  Party.  It  consisted  of  A. 
Cherry-Garrard,  C.  S.  Wright,  Petty  Officer  Keohane,  and  my- 
self. They  returned  to  Cape  Evans  on  January  28,  191 2.  The 
orders  then  were  for  two  dog  teams  to  proceed  as  far  south  as 
possible,  taking  into  consideration  the  times  of  return  of  the 
various  parties,  and  in  order  to  hasten  the  return  of  the  final 
party.  The  dog  teams  were  in  no  manner  a  relief  expedition 
and  were  simply  meant  to  bring  the  last  party  home  more 
speedily. 

On  our  return  to  Cape  Evans  the  ship  had  not  as  yet  been 
communicated  with.  Indeed  communication  was  not  established 
until  February  4,  owing  to  bad  sea  ice  intervening. 

On  February  9  we  started  landing  stores  from  the  ship,  and 
in  this  all  hands  were  employed. 

On  February  13,  the  sea  ice  having  started  to  break  up  in 
the  south  bay,  I  judged  it  advisable  to  make  a  start  with  the  two 
dog  teams  for  Hut  Point,  15  miles  to  the  south  of  Cape  Evans, 
a  journey  across  sea  ice.  It  was  from  this  point  that  the  Barrier 
could  be  reached  and  the  return  of  the  Southern  Party  hastened 
by  the  dog  teams.  The  two  dog  teams,  Demetri,  the  Russian 
boy,  and  myself  were  kept  at  Hut  Point  by  bad  weather  until 
February  19.  On  the  night  of  the  19th  the  weather  began  to 
abate.  At  3.30  A.M.,  while  we  were  in  our  sleeping-bags,  Petty 
Officer  Crean  reached  the  hut  and  brought  in  the  news  of  Lieu- 
tenant Evans'  breakdown  beyond  Corner  Camp.     Crean  had 


EVANS'    ILLNESS  205 

done  a  remarkable  walk  of  over  3$  statute  miles  to  get  what 
relief  he  could,  leaving  Lashly  to  look  after  Evans,  who  was  in 
a  very  serious  state  and  with  only  a  small  supply  of  food  left. 
Within  half  an  hour  of  his  arrival  a  very  thick  blizzard  came  on 
and  it  was  impossible  to  make  a  start.  The  blizzard  kept  on  the 
whole  day,  and  it  was  not  until  4.30  on  the  afternoon  of  the 
20th  that  a  start  was  possible.  Demetri  and  I  then  made  a  start 
with  both  dog  teams.  The  weather  was  exceedingly  thick  and 
we  could  only  see  a  very  short  distance.  We  travelled,  with  one 
rest  for  the  dogs,  until  4.30  P.M.  the  next  day.  Then  the  weather 
being  too  thick  to  travel  we  camped,  judging  that  we  were  some- 
where near  the  camp  with  Lieutenant  Evans  and  Lashly.  During 
a  temporary  clearness  we  saw  the  flag  which  Lashly  had  put  up 
on  the  sledge  about  2  miles  away.  We  found  Lashly  and  Evans 
within  the  tent.  During  the  whole  of  that  night  and  the  next 
day  the  blizzard  continued  and  it  was  impossible  to  travel.  The 
story  of  Lashly's  and  Crean's  devotion  will  no  doubt  be  told  in 
another  place.  Lashly  looked  after  Evans,  and  his  nursing  ar- 
rangements were  splendid. 

At  3  A.M.  on  the  morning  of  the  22nd  we  made  a  start,  Evans 
being  in  his  sleeping-bag  on  the  sledge.  The  teams  travelled 
well,  and  with  only  one  break  15  miles  from  Hut  Point  we 
reached  home  and  safety  for  him  at  midday,  after  5  hours'  actual 
travelling.  Considering  his  condition,  I  judged  that  if  I  were 
able  to  obtain  help  from  Cape  Evans  it  would  be  better  for  me 
to  stay  with  Lieutenant  Evans  and  for  Wright  or  Cherry-Gar- 
rard to  take  my  place  with  the  dog  teams  and  to  go  south  with 
Demetri. 

On  February  23  Demetri  went  to  Cape  Evans,  and  that  same 
night  Wright,  Cherry-Garrard  and  Davies  the  carpenter  came 
up  to  Hut  Point.  Having  regard  to  his  work,  it  was  better  that 
Wright  should  not  take  command  of  the  dog  teams,  and  so  it 
was  settled  that  Cherry-Garrard  should  do  this.  After  due 
consideration  of  weights  and  the  probabilities  of  the  date  by 
which  the  final  party  could  return  to  certain  depots,  it  was  de- 
cided that  the  dogs  should  take  24  days'  food  for  themselves  and 
21  days'  food  for  the  two  men,  carrying  in  addition  two  weeks' 
surplus  supplies  for  the  Southern  Party  complete  and  certain 
delicacies  which  they  had  asked  for.  The  totals  brought  the 
weight  carried  by  each  team  up  to  the  most  economical  travel- 


206  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

ling  limit  for  the  time  of  year.  As  there  was  no  dog  food  in  any 
of  the  depots  except  at  Corner  Camp  or  along  any  of  the  route, 
it  meant  that  24  days  was  the  limit  of  their  usefulness.  Again,  it 
cannot  be  too  firmly  emphasized  that  the  dog  teams  were  meant 
merely  to  hasten  the  return  of  the  Southern  Party  and  by  no 
means  as  a  relief  expedition. 

The  next  two  days,  February  25  and  26,  were  devoted  to 
giving  the  dogs  a  much  needed  rest  and  to  making  up  provisions 
and  dog  food.  Indeed,  owing  to  bad  weather,  it  would  have  been 
impossible  to  have  made  a  start  on  these  days.  This  following 
record  of  the  journey  of  the  two  dog  teams  is  taken  entirely  from 
Cherry-Garrard's  diary. 

February  26. — Since  it  looked  fair  last  night,  at  2  a.m.  they 
decided  to  start.  There  was  a  strong  wind  and  a  fair  amount 
of  drift  at  the  time.  The  dogs  proceeded  well  to  Safety  Camp 
and  then  on  to  the  biscuit  depot,  15  miles  from  Hut  Point.  There 
they  were  rested  for  a  short  while  and  finally  started  at  6  P.M., 
and  reached  Corner  Camp  at  10  p.m.  The  dogs  were  working 
splendidly  and  together,  and  completed  the  distance  of  30  geo- 
graphical miles  for  the  day  in  thick  weather  and  with  a  head 
wind. 

On  February  27  they  again  had  a  head  wind  and  low  drift; 
they  made  good  10  miles  and  then  camped  for  tea;  proceeding 
afterwards  over  a  very  good  surface  but  with  bad  light,  they 
completed  18  J/2  miles  for  the  day,  seeing  but  one  cairn  which 
they  only  made  out  when  it  was  20  yards  away.  They  camped  in 
the  nick  of  time,  as  a  blizzard  broke  upon  them  and  they  had 
great  difficulty  in  getting  the  tent  pitched.  The  dogs  pulled  well 
and  were  very  fit  and  not  done  up.  It  may  be  noted  in  passing 
that  the  difficulties  of  camping  and  breaking  camp  are  enor- 
mously increased  in  bad  weather  when  there  is  a  unit  of  only 
two  men  instead  of  four. 

Next  day,  February  28,  they  started  at  7.45  P.M.  on  a  beau- 
tifully clear  day  and  ran  10  miles  up  to  the  time  they  camped  for 
tea.  The  surface  was  good,  with  very  large  sastrugi.  On  one 
of  these,  while  Demetri  was  ahead,  Cherry-Garrard's  sledge 
upset;  he  had  to  unload  the  sledge  partially  in  order  to  right  it. 
As  it  was  righted  the  team  took  charge.  Cherry-Garrard  clung 
to  the  sledge  but  lost  his  driving  stick,  and  it  was  not  until  the 
team  had  taken  him  over  a  mile  to  the  south  that  they  were 


i9i2]  THE    DOG    TEAM    HELD    UP  207 

stopped.  The  weather  was  coming  on  thick,  and  it  was  an 
anxious  time,  as  their  weekly  bag,  cooker  and  tent  poles  had  been 
left  behind.  Eventually  both  teams  returned  and  the  sledge  was 
re-packed.  A  blizzard  came  on  and  they  were  unable  to  travel 
until  the  next  afternoon.  There  was  a  strong  wind  and  the  tem- 
perature began  falling  on  this  day.  They  completed  i6j4  miles 
for  the  day. 

February  29  proved  a  good  clear  day  and  they  reached  the 
Bluff  Depot  in  latitude  79 °  south.  The  sledgemeters  had  been 
giving  a  great  deal  of  trouble  and  did  not  tally;  this,  with  the 
bad  light,  increased  the  difficulty  of  navigation  enormously. 

On  March  1  they  started  about  mid-day  after  giving  the  dogs 
a  good  rest,  which  they  needed  after  their  long  runs  of  the  pre- 
vious days.  They  proceeded  for  10  miles  without  seeing  any- 
thing. The  weather  came  on  thick  and  they  had  to  camp  at 
6.30  P.M.  It  cleared  a  little  later  and  they  made  good  two  more 
miles.  The  party  on  this  day  saw  a  snowy  petrel.  The  position 
of  this  bird  so  far  south  and  away  from  food  is  remarkable. 

On  March  2  they  had  a  cold  and  sleepless  night  with  a  low 
temperature  and  a  blizzard  blowing  from  the  north-west.  The 
rate  of  travel  was  so  quick  that  the  dogs'  run  was  finished  early 
and  the  two  men  had  to  spend  an  unusually  long  time  in  their 
sleeping-bags,  which  in  this  cold  weather  was  bad  for  them  and 
bad  for  their  gear.  About  mid-day  the  weather  cleared  enough 
to  let  them  start. 

On  March  4  they  reached  One  Ton  Depot  in  the  morning, 
travelling  during  a  clear  night  and  morning.  A  blizzard  came 
on  after  their  arrival  and  the  temperature  had  fallen  consider- 
ably. Cherry-Garrard,  owing  to  the  low  temperature,  found  his 
glasses  of  no  use  and  had  to  trust  to  Demetri  to  pick  out  the 
cairns.  Owing  to  the  cold  weather  and  the  thin  coats  of  the 
dogs  he  rightly  decided  to  give  them  more  food. 

On  March  5,  6,  7  and  8  they  had  exceedingly  cold  weather 
and  blizzard.  On  none  of  these  days  would  it  have  been  pos- 
sible for  them  to  proceed  south  had  they  wished  to  do  so.  This 
party  had  no  minimum  thermometer,  but  on  most  of  the  nights 
before  the  sun  had  set  the  temperature  had  fallen  to  nearly  minus 
400,  which  probably  meant  a  minimum  temperature  of  between 
400  and  500  for  the  night.  The  dogs  were  in  bad  condition  and 
feeling  the  cold.     Demetri  also  declared  that  he  felt  far  from 


208  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [March 

well.  These  days  of  bad  weather  left  Cherry-Garrard  with  the 
alternative  of  holding  on  at  the  camp  or  of  travelling  south  for 
one  day  and  allowing  one  day  to  return  to  the  One  Ton  Depot. 
Owing  to  the  difficulties  of  keeping  the  right  line  with  dog  teams, 
he  very  wisely  decided  to  remain  at  One  Ton  Depot,  leaving 
himself  with  only  8  days'  dog  food  to  return  on. 

Strict  injunctions  had  been  given  by  Captain  Scott  that  the 
dogs  should  not  be  risked  in  any  way. 

On  March  10  they  depoted  their  two  weeks'  supply  of  pro- 
visions for  the  Southern  Party,  including  several  smaller  deli- 
cacies. One  Ton  was  then  supplied  with  sufficient  man  provi- 
sions for  a  party  of  five  for  over  a  month.  On  this  same  day 
they  started  their  return  journey  at  8  A.M.  after  a  very  cold  night. 
Their  gear  and  sleeping-bags  were  all  iced  up  and  neither  of  the 
men  in  good  condition.  The  dogs  at  the  start  went  practically 
wild,  Demetri's  sledge  crossing  Cherry-Garrard's  and  smashing 
the  sledgemeter  adrift.  They  fought  as  they  went  in  their  har- 
ness and  had  no  idea  of  direction.  This  continued  for  six  or 
seven  miles  and  then  they  got  better.  After  this  the  weather  be- 
came gradually  overcast  and  navigation  became  difficult.  After 
camping,  they  again  proceeded  slowly  by  compass,  completing 
23  miles  for  the  day,  but  had  no  idea  of  their  whereabouts  at  the 
end. 

The  next  morning,  March  11,  the  weather  was  so  overcast 
that  they  could  not  start.  Quoting  from  his  diary:  '  Started  at 
2  p.m.  with  just  a  little  patch  of  blue  sky,  but  we  did  not  know 
where  we  were  going  and  stopped  at  8  miles  in  a  blizzard.  I 
think  we  were  turning  circles  most  of  the  time.'  During  the  night 
and  morning  of  March  12  they  had  very  heavy  blizzard  and 
very  low  temperature.  Demetri  declared  that  he  could  see  the 
Bluff  and  that  they  were  right  into  the  land.  This  meant  that 
they  would  be  amongst  the  ice  pressure  and  crevasses.  They 
steered  east  away  from  this,  and  the  weather  clearing  slightly, 
they  saw  White  Island  and  headed  back  toward  this.  The  tem- 
perature now  remained  below  minus  30  for  the  whole  of  the  day 
and  the  dogs  and  men  began  to  feel  the  effects  of  the  low  tem- 
perature and  high  winds. 

On  March  13  they  got  a  point  of  land  to  steer  upon,  realis- 
ing that  they  were  well  to  the  east  of  what  their  position  ought 
to  have  been.    They  did  18  miles  for  the  day  and  camped  in  a 


i9i2]  HARDSHIPS    ON    THE    RETURN  209 

fog.  The  year  was  closing  in  and  the  time  of  the  travelling  day 
was  much  decreased.  Demetri  thought  that  he  saw  the  flag  of 
Corner  Camp  to  the  west  and  steered  for  it.  Luckily  the  foot 
hills  cleared  and  they  were  able  to  avoid  the  ice  pressure  and 
crevasses  of  White  Island,  for  which  they  had  been  steering. 
The  total  run  for  the  day  was  about  1 1  miles. 

On  March  14  they  had  a  clear  day  and  realised  that  they 
were  a  good  deal  out  of  their  reckoning.  Getting  under  way 
they  thought  they  saw  what  was  a  cairn;  making  for  it,  they 
found  it  was  a  great  open  crevasse  or  chasm  with  pressure  on 
the  farther  side  miraged.  They  then  made  out  south-east  and 
crossed  several  big  crevasses.  Soon*  after  this  they  saw  the 
motor  one  mile  to  the  east,  and  Corner  Camp  2  miles  beyond 
that.  They  ran  on  past  Corner  Camp  and  eventually  reached 
the  Biscuit  Depot  15  miles  from  Hut  Point.  On  this  day  Demetri 
nearly  fainted  and  declared  that  he  was*  completely  done.  Their 
main  anxiety  now  was  whether  the  sea  ice  between  the  edge  of 
the  Barrier  and  Hut  Point  still  remained  in. 

On  March  15  they  were  held  up  all  day  at  the  Biscuit  Depot 
by  a  blizzard,  Demetri's  condition  causing  Cherry-Garrard  great 
alarm. 

On  March  16,  after  a  night  of  blizzard,  they  started  at  8  A.M. 
They  reached  Hut  Point  late  in  the  afternoon,  meeting  there 
Petty  Officer  Keohane  and  myself.  Both,  men  were  in-  exceedingly 
poor  condition,  Cherry-Garrard's  state  causing  me  serious  alarm. 
The  dogs  were  frostbitten,  and  miserably  thin,  while  in  many 
cases  their  harnesses  were  iced  up.  and  frozen  to  them.  They 
were  quite  unfit  for  any  further  work  that  season. 

Cherry-Garrard  under  the  circumstances  and  according  to 
his  instructions  was  in  my  judgment  quite  right  in  everything 
that  he  did.  I  am  absolutely  certain  no  other  officer  of  the  Expe- 
dition could  have  done  better. 


VOL.   II — 14 


CHAPTER    II 

On  February  23,  when  Demetri  went  to  Cape  Evans  to  try  and 
obtain  help,  he  had  a  letter  from  me  to  Lieutenant  Pennell,  com- 
manding the  Terra  Nova,  conveying  my  request.  After  Cherry- 
Garrard  and  Demetri  had  left  on  the  26th,  Lashly,  Lieutenant 
Evans,  Wright,  and  myself  were  left  at  Hut  Point. 

On  February  29,  the  sea  ice  having  gone  out  to  within  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  of  Hut  Point,  the  ship  arrived.  Lieutenant 
Evans  in  his  sleeping-bag  was  placed  on  a  sledge  and  removed 
on  board  the  ship.  She  returned  to  Cape  Evans,  landing  Wright 
and  Lashly  there,  together  with  some  stores.  She  then  proceeded 
north  to  Evans  Coves  to  try  and  pick  up  Lieutenant  Campbell 
and  his  party.  Lieutenant  Evans'  condition  being  still  serious  I 
had  to  accompany  him.  After  several  unsuccessful  attempts  to 
relieve  Campbell,  the  ship  returned  to  Cape  Evans  on  March  4. 
Here,  Keohane  was  picked  up,  and  he  and  I  were  landed  by 
the  ship  at  Hut  Point.  Until  the  arrival  of  the  dog  teams  on 
March  16  we  occupied  ourselves  killing  seals  and  laying  in  a 
store  of  meat  and  blubber  before  the  return  of  the  Southern 
Party.  The  ship,  meanwhile,  had  proceeded  north  on  a  third 
attempt  to  relieve  Campbell  and  his  party.  Owing  to  her  small 
coal  supply,  she  could  not  stay  in  the  Sound  later  than  March  8, 
and  thus  she  was  unable  to  notify  us  at  the  base  of  her  success 
or  failure  in  this  undertaking. 

On  March  16,  Cherry-Garrard  and  Demetri  came  in  and 
reported  that  they  had  seen  no  sign  of  the  Polar  Party;  they 
also  reported  the  early  break  of  the  season,  exceedingly  low  tem- 
peratures and  the  bad  weather  on  the  Barrier.  The  condition  of 
both  men  was  such  that  it  was  impossible  for  them  to  do  any 
further  sledging  that  season.  I  told  Cherry-Garrard  that  we 
should  have  to  make  another  journey  to  try  and  get  to  the  Polar 
Party;  he  readily  agreed  and  said  that  he  would  be  quite  ready 
himself  after  a  few  days'  rest.  The  taking  of  Demetri  owing  to 
his  health  was  out  of  the  question.  On  the  third  day  after  his 
return  Cherry-Garrard  collapsed  in  the  morning,  suffering  from 


A   LAST    EFFORT  211 

an  over-strained  heart;  it  was  a  very  sad  blow  to  him  to  realise 
that  he  was  unable  to  help  during  this  anxious  time,  and  it  was  a 
hard  measure  to  have  to  tell  him  that  further  sledging  that  year 
was  impossible  for  him. 

Realising  that  something  had  to  be  done,  I  proposed  to  Keo- 
hane  that  he  should  come  out  alone  with  me.  He  was  cheerful 
and  willing  and  proved  of  the  very  greatest  service  during  a  very 
trying  time. 

We  discussed  fully  the  probable  dates  of  the  return  of  the 
party  to  certain  points  and  the  possibility  of  two  men  being  able 
to  render  them  material  assistance.  Owing  to  the  bad  light  and 
the  time  of  the  year,  the  probabilities  were  that  they  could  only 
be  met  at  depots. 

On  March  26  Keohane  and  I,  having  eighteen  days'  food 
for  ourselves  and  the  major  portion  of  a  week's  ration  for  the 
Polar  Party,  started  south.  On  the  first  day  we  made  good  about 
nine  miles  after  a  very  hard  pull.  The  temperature  was  exceed- 
ingly low  but  the  weather  fair.  Our  minimum  thermometer 
failed  on  this  journey,  so  that  there  was  no  accurate  record  of  the 
temperatures.  After  a  sleepless  night  we  started  at  8.30  and 
made  good  another  nine  miles.  The  day  was  overcast  and  there 
was  no  point  to  steer  by.  The  weather  continued  cold  and  there 
was  practically  no  sleep  at  night  in  the  tent  occupied  by  only  two 
men. 

On  March  29  it  was  again  overcast,  with  strong  breeze;  we 
made  good  eleven  miles  and  then,  the  weather  clearing,  we  real- 
ised that  we  were  too  far  in  to  White  Island  amongst  the 
pressure. 

On  the  30th  we  made  out  from  White  Island,  then  a  few 
miles  south  of  Corner  Camp.  We  returned  to  the  motor,  taking 
up  the  sledge  left  there  by  Lieutenant  Evans,  and  then  on  to 
Corner  Camp.  Taking  into  consideration  the  weather  and  tem- 
peratures and  the  time  of  the  year,  and  the  hopelessness  of  find- 
ing the  party  except  at  any  definite  point  like  a  depot,  I  decided 
to  return  from  here.  We  depoted  the  major  portion  of  a  week's 
provisions  to  enable  them  to  communicate  with  Hut  Point  in 
case  they  should  reach  this  point.  At  this  date  in  my  own  mind  I 
was  morally  certain  that  the  party  had  perished,  and  in  fact  on 
March  29  Captain  Scott,  n  miles  south  of  One  Ton  Depot, 
made  the  last  entry  in  his  diary. 


212  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [April 

A  partial  blizzard  sprang  up  and  we  set  sail;  with  this  help 
we  made  good  8  miles  during  the  two  hours  of  light  remaining 
to  us. 

On  March  31,  snow  was  falling  heavily  and  we  got  under 
way  in  a  very  bad  light.  Our  condition  was  bad,  as  owing  to 
the  low  temperatures  we  had  got  no  sleep.  We  made  good  to 
the  Biscuit  Depot,  15  miles  from  home,  and  then  proceeded  in 
the  dusk  for  one  more  mile. 

The  next  day,  April  1,  with  a  strong  following  breeze  and  a 
sail  to  help  us,  we  reached  Hut  Point  after  dark.  We  were  both 
glad  to  be  in  and  to  get  some  sleep.  By  this  time  all  hope  of  the 
return  of  the  Southern  Party  had  been  given  up.  Cape  Evans 
was  separated  from  us  by  open  water  and  it  was  then  impossible 
to  get  help  from  that  quarter  while,  for  all  we  knew,  Campbell 
and  his  party  had  still  not  been  relieved  and  were  somewhere 
on  the  coast.  I  regarded  their  relief  at  this  time  as  being  of 
prime  importance.  To  effect  this  it  was  essential  to  get  help  from 
Cape  Evans,  as  at  Hut  Point  we  had  two  sick  men  and  two  men 
who  were  capable  of  sledging  at  that  time  of  the  year.  We 
watched  the  Sound  anxiously  for  any  chance  of  being  able  to  get 
across  the  sea  ice  to  Cape  Evans.  Almost  every  day  it  froze  over 
in  a  thin  sheet,  only  to  be  swept  away  by  high  winds.  The  tem- 
peratures recorded  at  this  time  of  the  year  were  io°  to  150  lower 
at  Hut  Point  than  they  had  been  in  the  previous  season. 

On  April  10  the  two  Bays,  one  between  Glacier  Tongue 
and  the  Hutton  Cliffs  on  the  peninsula  and  the  other  between 
the  Glacier  Tongue  and  Cape  Evans,  having  frozen  over,  I  de- 
cided to  make  along  the  peninsula  with  Keohane  and  Demetri, 
lower  ourselves  over  the  cliffs  and  make  for  Cape  Evans.  Leav- 
ing Cherry-Garrard  necessarily  at  Hut  Point  to  look  after  the 
dogs,  we  made  our  way  along  the  peninsula  and  had  only  slight 
difficulty  in  lowering  ourselves  and  the  sledge  over  the  cliffs  with 
the  Alpine  rope.  On  this  occasion  our  luck  was  most  distinctly 
in.  We  had  reached  this  place  about  10  miles  from  Cape  Evans 
at  2.30  in  the  afternoon;  we  then  expected,  owing  to  the  bad 
surface  of  new  sea  ice,  to  have  a  pull  lasting  well  on  to  12  mid- 
night, instead  of  which  the  ice  had  a  firm  and  even  surface  and 
was  devoid  of  any  slush  and  ice-flowers  such  as  are  usual.  We 
set  sail  before  a  strong  falling  breeze,  and  all  sitting  on  the 
sledge  had  reached  the  Glacier  Tongue  in  twenty  minutes.     We 


i9i2]  COUNCIL   AT    CAPE    EVANS  213 

clambered  over  the  Tongue,  and  our  luck  and  the  breeze  still 
holding,  we  reached  Cape  Evans,  completing  the  last  seven  miles 
all  sitting  on  the  sledge  in  an  hour.  There  I  called  together  all 
the  members  and  explained  the  situation,  telling  them  what  had 
been  done  and  what  I  then  proposed  to  do,  also  asking  them 
for  their  advice  in  this  trying  time.  The  opinion  was  almost 
unanimous  that  all  that  was  possible  had  been  already  done. 
Owing  to  the  lateness  of  the  year  and  the  likelihood  of  our  being 
unable  to  make  our  way  up  the  coast  to  Campbell  one  or  two 
members  suggested  that  another  journey  might  be  made  to  Cor- 
ner Camp.  Knowing  the  conditions  which  had  lately  prevailed 
on  the  Barrier,  I  took  it  upon  myself  to  decide  the  uselessness  of 
this. 

April  11  and  12  were  spent  in  preparing  gear  and  securing 
provisions. 

On  April  13,  about  10.30  in  the  morning,  with  Wright,  Gran, 
Keohane,  Williamson,  and  Demetri  I  started  back  to  Hut 
Point.  The  surface  of  the  sea  ice  had  then  completely  changed 
and  was  covered  with  slush  and  ice-flowers;  a  trying  blizzard 
started,  and  after  a  very  hard  pull  we  had  to  run  for  shelter  to 
the  little  Razorback  Island.  We  camped  there  and  had  tea. 
Soon  after,  the  blizzard  abated  somewhat  and  we  got  under  way. 
We  made  very  slow  progress,  and  after  a  very  hard  day's  pull 
could  only  reach  the  Glacier  Tongue,  seven  miles  from  home. 
The  next  morning  we  awoke,  made  our  way  over  the  Tongue, 
and  reaching  the  cliffs  had  some  difficulty  in  getting  up.  The 
sledge  was  held  at  arm's  length  by  four  men  while  one  clambered 
up  and  by  the  help  of  his  knife  eventually  gained  a  sure  footing 
and  was  able  to  help  the  others.  Except  for  the  steepness  of  the 
climb,  the  remainder  of  the  journey  to  Hut  Point  was  easy. 
There  we  found  Cherry-Garrard  greatly  relieved  at  our  return, 
as  the  ice  had  been  blowing  out  of  the  Sound,  but  had  luckily 
remained  in  in  the  two  bays.  We  reached  Hut  Point  on  the 
14th. 

The  15th  and  16th  were  occupied  in  drying  gear  and  making 
up  provisions  for  four  weeks.  I  decided  to  take  C.  S.  Wright, 
who  was  a  skilled  navigator,  Petty  Officer  Williamson,  and 
Keohane.  The  season  was  well  advanced  and  a  great  part  of 
the  travelling  and  camping  had  to  be  done  in  the  dusk. 

On  April  17  we  started  across  the  sea  ice,  and  after  5  miles 


214  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [April 

wc  reached  some  old  sea  ice  which  had  probably  been  there  for 
two  years  or  more.  We  then  proceeded  over  a  very  good  sur- 
face through  a  cold  day,  towards  the  pinnacled  ice  and  com- 
pleted 13  miles  for  that  day.  The  minimum  for  the  night  was 
—  430.  We  did  not  sleep  very  well  and  started  breakfast  at  7  a.m. 
in  the  dark.  The  temperature  for  the  whole  day  was  about 
minus  400.  We  made  good  progress  over  this  same  old  sea 
ice  and  luckily  we  were  able  to  skirt  the  edge  of  the  pinnacled  ice. 
We  camped  finally  about  four  miles  from  the  Eskers  on  the  west- 
ern shore,  four  miles  of  new  sea  ice  intervening  between  us  and 
them.  On  this  night  there  were  five  penguins  on  the  old  sea  ice 
by  our  camp.  This  was  disturbing,  as  it  meant  the  near  presence 
of  open  water.  The  minimum  for  the  night  was  minus  45 °. 
When  the  morning  broke,  we  saw  that  a  blizzard  was  impending 
and  we  knew  it  was  a  matter  of  speed  if  we  were  to  cross  the 
new  sea  ice  in  safety.  Luckily  the  wind  favoured  us.  We  set 
sail  and  practically  ran  with  the  sledge  for  two  miles  before  it. 
The  wind  then  falling  light  our  progress  became  very  slow  over 
a  bad  surface.  To  add  to  our  anxiety  we  could  see  several  Em- 
peror penguins  making  towards  the  old  sea  ice  and  big  leads 
opening  and  frost  smoke  rising  from  the  breaking  up  of  the 
new  sea  ice.  Eventually  we  reached  the  Eskers  in  safety.  We 
proceeded  over  a  very  bad  surface  from  Butter  Point  for  four 
miles  and  then,  a  strong  blizzard  setting  in,  we  had  to  camp. 
This  blizzard  proved  far  from  being  a  friend.  With  it  the  tem- 
perature rose  to  zero,  and  our  clothing  and  our  bags,  which  were 
already  full  of  ice,  became  saturated,  making  us  in  a  very  un- 
comfortable state. 

On  the  20th  in  the  morning,  after  3  miles,  we  reached  the 
depot  on  the  northern  end  of  Butter  Point.  This  depot  had  been 
left  there  earlier  in  the  season  by  the  ship.  We  camped  and  had 
some  tea.  Having  struck  camp,  while  we  were  harnessing  up 
Williamson  exclaimed,  '  Lord,  look  at  that!  '  The  sea  ice  at  the 
foot  of  the  Point  was  gradually  breaking  up  and  sailing  out  to 
sea.  This  meant  that  it  was  impossible  for  a  party  to  travel 
up  the  coast  to  the  relief  of  Campbell,  and  we  necessarily  had 
to  turn  back  from  this  point.  It  also  meant  that  it  was  impos- 
sible for  Campbell  and  his  party  to  make  their  way  down  the 
coast  and  that  in  all  probability  he  and  his  party  would  have  to 
winter  at  Evans  Coves.    The  question  of  their  travelling  on  such 


z9»]  A    DIFFICULT    RETURN  215 

sea  ice  was  infinitely  more  disturbing  than  the  question  of  their 
wintering  there. 

As  one  instance  of  the  loyal  way  in  which  I  was  supported 
during  the  whole  of  this  season,  I  can  quote  the  following: 
1  Wright,  from  the  very  first,  had  been  entirely  against  this  jour- 
ney. He  had  some  knowledge  of  a  previous  sledge  trip  on  the 
western  coast.  Not  until  after  I  had  told  him  that  we  should  have 
to  turn  back,  did  he  tell  me  how  thankful  he  was  at  the  decision. 
He  had  come  on  this  trip  fully  believing  that  there  was  every 
probability  of  the  party  being  lost,  but  had  never  demurred  and 
never  offered  a  contrary  opinion,  and  one  cannot  be  thankful 
enough  to  such  men.' 

We  depoted  two  weeks'  provisions  at  Butter  Point  and  started 
to  make  our  way  back  to  Hut  Point,  our  only  anxiety  being  lest 
the  new  sea  ice  had  blown  out  in  the  blizzard  which  had  delayed 
us  at  Butter  Point.  That  night  we  camped  near  the  northern 
end  of  the  Eskers  and  awaited  the  morning  with  some  anxiety. 
To  our  joy  we  found  that  the  4  miles  of  new  ice  was  still  in  in 
part.  Again  with  a  favouring  wind  we  set  sail  and  ran  before 
it  for  2  miles.  The  wind  again  fell  light,  and  to  our  consterna- 
tion we  saw  the  Emperor  penguins  walking  solemnly  toward 
the  edge  of  the  old  sea  ice  which  probably  meant  that  there  was 
open  water  between  us  and  it.  But  eventually  we  reached  safety 
and  camped  for  a  meal,  then  in  a  bad  light  completed  6  more 
miles. 

Next  morning,  the  22nd,  a  blizzard  caused  a  late  start.  We 
made  for  the  end  of  the  pinnacled  ice,  hoping  to  find  our  ice  still 
in.  As  we  approached,  dense  volumes  of  frost-smoke  were  seen 
arising  from  where  it  had  been.  This  was  serious,  as  it  probably 
meant  we  should  have  to  make  our  way  through  the  pinnacled  ice, 
an  undertaking  which  meant  several  more  days  in  the  bad  light 
and  bad  going.  Luckily  for  the  party,  there  was  a  narrow  ledge 
or  ice-foot  projecting  from  the  edge  of  the  pinnacled  ice.  Al- 
ternately along  this  and  along  the  edge  of  the  pinnacled  ice  we 
made  our  way,  stumbling  and  falling  in  the  holes  and  capsizing 
the  sledge.  After  7  miles  we  made  our  way  through,  and  al- 
though we  could  not  then  see  our  whereabouts,  we  knew  the 
remainder  of  the  journey  would  be  pretty  plain  sailing. 

On  April  23  there  was  a  blizzard  in  the  morning,  a  very 
strong  wind  and  low  temperature.     There  were  no  land  marks 


216  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [May 

to  steer  by,  and  using  the  sastrugi  for  this  purpose  we  only  com- 
pleted 3  y2  miles  by  i  o'clock  and  then  camped  for  a  meal.  Soon 
after,  the  weather  cleared  slightly  and  we  started  to  make  our 
way  to  Hut  Point.  We  found  that  the  sea  ice  had  again  gone 
out  close  to  Hut  Point,  but  by  keeping  well  to  the  south  and  com- 
pleting 15  miles,  a  very  good  march  for  the  day,  we  arrived  at 
Hut  Point  in  the  dark.  I  have  never  known  a  journey  have  such 
an  effect  upon  a  party  in  such  a  short  time. 

On  the  23rd,  the  day  we  returned,  we  saw  the  sun  for  the  last 
time  until  his  return  in  August.  The  greater  part  of  this  jour- 
ney was  done  in  the  dusk.  Wright,  owing  to  the  low  tempera- 
ture, was  unable  to  wear  his  glasses.  The  light  being  bad  and 
he  short-sighted,  he  marched  under  a  very  great  disadvantage. 
I  have  spoken  before  of  his  loyalty  and  good-comradeship. 
Petty  Officer  Keohane  behaved  splendidly  on  the  Barrier  in  the 
latter  end  of  March  and  beginning  of  April  and  again  on  this 
journey.  Williamson's  conduct  was  also  splendid  in  every  way. 
The  next  few  days  we  spent  at  Hut  Point  drying  out  our  gear, 
which  was  badly  iced,  and  getting  some  sleep,  which  we  all 
needed.  We  began  to  realise  that  it  was  a  question  now  of 
making  the  best  of  circumstances  and  waiting  till  the  spring  of 
the  year  before  anything  further  could  be  done.  At  Hut  Point 
Cherry-Garrard,  Gran,  and  Demetri  had  remained,  and  their 
task  of  waiting  had  been  by  no  means  the  easier  one. 

As  winter  drew  on,  we  had  now  to  return  to  the  base.  On 
April  28  Wright,  Gran,  and  Keohane  started  to  make  their  way 
back  to  Cape  Evans  over  the  sea  ice.  Soon  after  they  had 
rounded  the  point  it  began  to  blow  very  stiffly  and  they  ran  for 
safety  to  the  Glacier  Tongue;  they  crossed  very  thin  and  bad 
sea  ice,  Wright  having  to  go  ahead  at  the  full  length  of  the 
Alpine  rope.  When  they  arrived  eventually  at  Cape  Evans  it 
was  dark  and  blowing  a  blizzard.  They  were  lost  on  the 
Cape  for  some  time,  but  eventually  found  the  hut  and  were  in 
safety. 

On  May  1  Cherry-Garrard,  Demetri,  Williamson,  and  I 
returned  to  Cape  Evans  with  the  two  dog  teams.  There  we 
started  to  settle  in  for  the  winter  and  gradually  took  up  the 
winter  routine. 

Everything  was  well  at  the  hut  at  Cape  Evans  and  work, 
scientific  and  otherwise,  had  been  proceeding  as  usual.    We  early 


DEMETRI    GEROFF 


GRAN    WITH    MULE       LAL    KHAN 


i9i2]  SECOND  WINTER  AT  CAPE  EVANS  217 

realised  that  for  the  sake  of  everyone  concerned  the  routine 
followed  in  the  previous  year  must  be  continued  in  this  as  far 
as  possible.  It  was  a  necessity  for  us  to  keep  up  our  work  and 
interests  and  exercise,  so  as  to  avoid  slackness  and  depression 
and  to  keep  fit  and  useful  through  the  dark  months.  The  North 
Bay  had  only  frozen  to  within  half  a  mile  of  the  hut  and  had 
been  continually  freezing  and  blowing  out. 

The  seven  mules,  which  had  been  given  by  the  Indian  Gov- 
ernment to  Captain  Scott  to  enable  him  to  carry  on  further  ex- 
ploration in  the  second  year,  were  in  excellent  condition.  Lashly 
had  received  certain  instructions  from  Captain  Oates  when 
Evans'  party  left  them  on  the  Plateau  at  870  37'.  He  had  been 
in  entire  charge  of  the  mules  and  continued  so  throughout  the 
winter.  Their  condition  throughout  was  splendid  and  spoke  vol- 
umes for  the  care  with  which  he  looked  after  them.  These  mules 
were  suggested  to  Captain  Scott  by  Captain  Oates,  and  they  justi- 
fied his  hopes  in  every  way.  The  mules  had  been  exercised  regu- 
larly whenever  the  weather  permitted,  and  already  the  seven 
leaders  had  adopted  their  four-footed  charges.  The  ship  had 
also  brought  down  fourteen  new  dogs.  Three  of  these  died  soon 
after  landing,  and  eventually  only  four  of  them  proved  to  be  of 
any  use  for  sledging.  A  litter  of  pups  had  been  added,  but  these 
died  owing  to  their  mother  leaving  them. 

Debenham  had  been  doing  the  meteorological  work  and  Nel- 
son, who  was  in  charge,  had  carried  out  the  magnetic  observa- 
tions. Crean  was  in  charge  of  the  sledges  and  sledging  gear  and 
Williamson  had  charge  of  the  sewing-machine,  with  Keohane  to 
help  Crean  and  Williamson.  We  early  appreciated  the  efforts 
of  a  really  good  cook  in  Mr.  Archer,  who  had  been  landed  for 
this  second  year.  Besides  being  a  good  cook  he  proved  a  good 
companion  and  was  always  lively  and  cheerful.  Lieutenant  Gran 
took  charge  of  the  stores  and  also  of  the  four  hourly  meteoro- 
logical observations.  He  proved  a  most  efficient  stores  officer 
and  in  his  observations  was  continually  trying  to  break  previous 
records,  which  he  was  very  often  able  to  do  in  this  exceptional 
season.  Cherry-Garrard  was  again  our  editor  for  the  South 
Polar  Times  and  took  over  the  care  and  preparation  of  all  the 
ornithological  and  zoological  specimens  obtained.  Hooper,  the 
steward,  took  over  the  management  of  the  acetylene  plant, 
thereby  relieving  some  one  else  of  a  very  thankless  task. 


218  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION 

The  mules  were  apportioned  as  follows: 

To  Nelson Khan  Sahib 

To  Gran      Lai  Khan 

To  Crean Rani 

To  Keohane Begum 

To  Williamson Gulab 

To  Hooper Abdullah 

To  Archer Pyaree 

A  regular  night  watch  to  take  hourly  observations  of  aurora, 
to  look  after  the  mules  and  to  keep  in  the  fires  was  also  kept. 
Since  our  numbers  were  so  much  reduced  the  men  were  asked  to 
take  their  nights,  and  to  this  they  cheerfully  agreed.  We  num- 
bered altogether  thirteen  souls  in  the  hut.  Weekly  lectures  were 
arranged  to  be  given  by  the  various  officers,  and  instead  of  con- 
fining these  to  merely  scientific  subjects,  other  items  of  interest 
were  lectured  upon. 


CHAPTER    III 

On  May  3rd  to  the  5th  we  had  an  exceptionally  strong  blizzard 
wind.  In  the  evening  the  gusts  recorded  by  the  anemometer 
were  between  70  and  88  miles  an  hour,  a  strength  consider- 
ably over  that  of  any  previous  observation.  The  ice  was  again 
blown  from  the  North  Bay.  During  the  whole  of  the  night 
the  force  of  the  gale  increased,  and  toward  morning  it  began 
to  take  off.  When  Gran  checked  the  instrument  at  8.30  A.M. 
it  registered  for  3  minutes  the  rate  of  104  miles  an  hour,  and 
by  this  time  its  force  had  abated  considerably.  It  was  exceed- 
ingly difficult  at  this  time  of  the  year  to  obtain  any  seals  owing 
to  the  lack  of  ice  in  the  South  and  North  Bays. 

Simpson  had  some  hyacinth  bulbs  sent  down  to  him,  and 
under  Hooper's  care  these,  embedded  in  a  basin  full  of  white 
sawdust,  burst  into  bloom  and  lasted  for  some  considerable  time. 

It  was  strange  at  this  time  of  the  year  to  see  the  open  water 
right  up  to  the  hut.  The  sky  effects  were  beautiful  towards  the 
north  at  mid-day,  and  on  a  calm  day  their  reflection  from  the 
open  water  was  splendid. 

Demetri  and  Keohane  busied  themselves  in  building  a  dog 
hospital.  This  was  essential,  as  several  of  the  dogs  had  not  as 
yet  recovered  from  their  trip  to  the  Barrier  in  March.  It  was 
large  and  comparatively  warm  and  much  appreciated  by  the 
invalids. 

The  exceptional  weather  with  repeated  blizzards  of  great 
force  during  the  whole  of  May  kept  both  man  and  beast  very 
much  confined  to  the  hut.  This  one  felt  more  than  the  previous 
year,  as  besides  being  confined  to  the  hut,  when  it  was  possible 
to  get  exercise  we  could  only  do  so  for  a  short  distance  on  the 
Cape,  whereas  in  the  previous  year  the  sea  ice  had  extended 
for  some  30  miles  to  the  north  of  us.  There  was  now  open 
water  to  the  south. 

Crean  and  Keohane  had  already  started  mending  most  of 


220  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [May 

the  sleeping-bags,  which  were  in  sad  need  of  repair.  Luckily 
the  ship  had  left  us  with  a  good  supply  of  reindeer  skin  and 
there  was  plenty  to  go  round  and  fill  up  the  bare  patches  in  the 
sleeping-bags. 

The  mule  gear  which  had  been  supplied  by  the  Indian 
Government  showed  the  very  greatest  forethought  in  every 
detail.  There  were  only  very  slight  alterations  to  be  made, 
more  especially  in  the  texture  of  the  gear.  The  mules  had  been 
supplied  with  a  form  of  canvas  snow-goggles,  for  the  ponies 
in  the  previous  year  had  suffered  badly  from  snow  blindness. 
These  goggles  saved  the  mules  from  this  amount  of  discomfort 
when  they  were  on  the  Barrier.  We  also  realised  that  owing 
to  their  small  hoofs  they  would  probably  have  to  use  snow-shoes. 
These  had  been  supplied,  and  on  trying  the  mules  with  them 
most  of  the  animals  after  a  very  short  time  took  to  them  quite 
naturally. 

Debenham  had  been  given  charge  of  all  photographic  gear; 
and  was  out  continually  taking  photographs  of  general  and  scien- 
tific interest. 

On  May  10  Nelson  lectured  on  the  tides,  the  main  interest 
of  his  contention  being  that  with  the  greatest  declination  of  the 
moon  the  movement  of  ice  was  more  probable. 

A  never-failing  source  of  amusement  after  dinner  every  night 
has  been  a  form  of  bagatelle  which  is  played  on  a  mess  table. 
The  table  was  covered  with  a  strip  of  green  Willesden  canvas 
stretched  between  two  long  boards  which  formed  the  cushions. 
Between  these  boards  at  the  top  of  the  table  a  bridge  fits,  having 
in  it  a  number  of  holes.  The  object  is  to  get  the  balls  into  these 
holes,  the  score  being  according  to  the  number  above  the  hole. 
A  competition  was  arranged  and  the  lowest  scorer  of  the  com- 
petition received  the  Jonah  Medal.  Having  obtained  this,  he 
had  to  announce  at  luncheon  each  day  '  Gentlemen,  I  am  the 
Jonah/  This  he  continued  to  do  until  someone  else  had  relieved 
him  of  the  medal. 

The  ice  in  the  North  Bay  now  froze  again  to  a  thickness  of 
4  to  5  inches.  Nelson  started  again  to  build  his  igloo  on  the  ice 
in  the  South  Bay  to  carry  on  his  biological  work.  When  he  had 
pricked  the  ice  the  water  came  through  and  flowed  over  the  floor 
of  his  igloo.  The  ice,  being  thin,  was  pressed  down  at  the  spot 
where  the  weight  bore  on  it. 


i9i2]  FISH,    FIRE,    AND    FOSSILS  221 

On  May  13  we  had  a  wonderful  aurora  display  about  6  p.m. 
and  this  was  believed  to  be  the  brightest  that  had  been  seen 
at  Cape  Evans.  The  greater  part  of  the  sky  was  covered,  but 
the  most  vivid  shafts  ran  north-east  and  south-west.  Debenham 
tried  with  various  exposures  to  photograph  the  phenomena,  but 
unluckily  failed  to  get  any  results.  We  started  again  our  fish 
trap  which  was  let  down  by  digging  a  hole  through  the  ice;  this 
was  at  first  successful  and  we  had  a  fair  number  of  fish.  The 
flesh  of  these  fish  was  so  sweet  that  they  were,  in  the  ordinary- 
way,  quite  unpleasant  eating.  Archer,  by  soaking  them  first  in 
vinegar  and  water,  made  them  much  more  palatable.  Keohane 
and  Williamson,  after  a  great  deal  of  trouble,  caught  some  of 
these  same  fish  by  hook  and  line. 

On  May  25  we  had  some  slight  excitement.  Wright  needed 
a  lamp  to  heat  his  magnetic  hut,  and  Nelson  and  he,  while  experi- 
menting with  one  and  increasing  the  pressure  in  the  lamp  to  give 
a  better  flare,  unluckily  managed  to  burst  it.  Immediately  the 
whole  end  of  the  table  and  part  of  the  floor  was  a  mass  of  flames. 
With  blankets  and  a  fire  extinguisher  these  were  soon  put  out 
and  no  harm  done.  Nelson,  whose  face  was  down  by  the  lamp 
when  the  explosion  occurred,  had  a  very  lucky  escape.  Our 
fish  trap,  which  had  been  failing  in  the  number  of  fish  caught 
each  day,  was  blown  out  to  sea  with  the  ice  from  the  North  Bay. 
This  was  a  serious  loss,  but  we  managed  with  some  wire,  iron 
bars,  and  two  hoops  to  make  another  but  smaller  one.  About  this 
time  some  of  the  geological  specimens  which  had  been  brought 
back  by  the  first  and  second  return  parties  were  handed  over  to 
Debenham.  These  had  mainly  been  collected  in  the  scattered 
moraine  under  the  Cloud-maker.  To  his  surprise  and  joy  several 
fossils  of  plants  and  small  marine  animals  were  found  in  some 
of  these. 

One  of  the  dogs,  Vaida,  who  had  been  ill  since  his  return,  was 
allowed  a  certain  amount  of  latitude;  he  frequently  came  into 
the  hut  and  would  take  up  his  position  there,  appreciating  the 
warmth  and  comfort  and  strenuously  resisting  ejection  at  any 
time.  Altogether  he  regarded  himself  as  having  taken  on  the 
duty  of  a  house  dog. 

On  June  1,  the  ice  appearing  sound,  Demetri  and  Hooper 
with  a  dog  team  went  to  Hut  Point,  doing  the  journey  there  and 
back  in  the  same  day.     One  of  the  dogs  had  been  lost  on  our 


222  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [June 

return  to  Cape  Evans;  but  no  trace  of  this  animal  was  found  on 
arriving  there  and  he  was  never  seen  again. 

The  first  week  of  June  proved  practically  calm  and  we  had 
our  coldest  temperatures  of  the  winter. 

However,  as  a  little  ice  remained  in  the  North  Bay  we  were 
able  to  get  more  exercise  for  men  and  animals.  From  the  8th  to 
the  13th  we  had  a  most  exceptional  blizzard;  both  for  the 
warmth  of  temperature  and  the  amount  of  drift.  It  was  quite 
possible  in  this  blizzard  to  move  a  few  yards  away  from  the  hut 
and  be  lost  for  some  considerable  time.  The  ice  again  blew  out 
and  we  had  a  wonderful  show  of  phosphorescence  in  the  sea. 
Once  beneath  the  ice  foot  we  saw  a  seal  chasing  a  school  of  fish, 
the  fish  outlined  with  phosphorescence  and  the  seal  with  a  glow- 
ing snout  and  all  his  body  bright,  in  hot  pursuit. 

In  the  previous  season  Wright  had  had  great  trouble  in 
maintaining  an  even  temperature  for  his  pendulum  observations. 
To  overcome  this  a  large  hole  was  cut  in  the  floor  of  the  dark 
room  and  a  Kenyte  boulder  embedded  in  it,  upon  which  the  pen- 
dulum was  set.  With  this  arrangement  he  was  able  to  take  his 
observations  more  accurately  and  in  greater  comfort. 

By  this  time  the  weather  seemed  to  have  broken  and  we  had 
one  almost  continuous  series  of  blizzards.  Meanwhile  we  had 
noticed  one  peculiarity  about  the  mules.  The  ponies  in  the  pre- 
vious year  had  refused  to  go  out  when  there  was  any  wind  and 
drift  blowing.  The  mules  on  the  other  hand  objected  strongly 
by  kicking  their  stable  and  squealing  if  they  were  not  taken  out 
for  exercise  under  these  conditions. 

On  the  19th  preparations  were  begun  for  our  celebrations  of 
Midwinter  Day  on  June  22.  Debenham  was  busy  making  the 
slides  for  a  lantern  lecture.  Gran  and  Williamson  were  busy 
behind  a  blanket  making  a  Christmas  tree.  This  consisted  of 
a  central  bamboo  with  lateral  stems  and  the  whole  embedded  in 
a  pot  of  gravel.  There  was  a  present  for  everyone  with  an 
appropriate  oration  on  its  presentation.  The  whole  was  lighted 
with  electric  light,  by  arrangement  with  the  physicist. 

On  June  22,  Mid-winter  Day,  Cherry-Garrard,  our  editor, 
presented  us  with  another  number  of  the  South  Polar  Times, 
and  the  remainder  of  the  afternoon  was  spent  as  a  holiday  in 
reading  this,  playing  bagatelle,  or  making  preparations  for  a 
happy  evening.     The  whole  hut  was  decorated  with  the  Christ- 


i9i2]  MID-WINTER    DAY  223 

mas  tree,  sledging  flags,  and  some  red  bunting.    A  large  white 
ensign  was  hung  over  all  as  a  canopy.     Nelson  presented  each 
member  with  a  very  pretty  menu  card.     These  were  cut  out  of 
cardboard  and  painted  to  represent  Adelie  penguins. 
The  menu  was : 

Cape  Evans, 

June  22nd,  Mid-winter's  Day. 

Croute  Erebus.     Amandes  Selles. 

Creme  de  Volaille  Ferrar. 

Noisettes  d'Agneau  Darwinian. 

Centre  Filet  de  Boeuf  roti. 

Asperges  en  Branches. 

Pommes  de  Terre  Naturel. 

Poudin  Noel.    Pate  d'Eunice. 

Compote  de  Fruits. 

Charlotte  Russe  glacee  a  la  Beardmore. 

Buszard's  Cake.       Dessert. 

After  dinner,  when  various  healths  had  been  drunk,  Gran 
jumped  out  of  the  dark  room  dressed  as  a  clown,  with  his  face 
powdered  and  painted.  His  acting  was  splendid,  with  a  joke  for 
everybody  and  sometimes  a  piece  of  poetry  which  he  declaimed 
to  the  men  as  they  came  forward  to  receive  their  presents.  Gran 
made  an  excellent  clown,  and  the  whole  entertainment  went  with 
a  roar  from  beginning  to  end.  Then  Debenham  put  up  his  lan- 
tern and  gave  us  a  lot  of  pictures  of  all  kinds,  leaving  Dunedin,  in 
the  pack,  Cape  Crozier,  the  Western  Mountains,  ponies,  and 
many  more.  He  had  taken  a  lot  of  time  and  trouble  over  these 
slides  and  they  were  excellent  and  added  to  the  enjoyment  of 
everybody.  The  evening  was  closed  by  a  sing-song.  Each  day 
now  we  knew  meant  one  more  towards  the  return  of  light  and  use- 
fulness, and  preparations  were  started  for  the  future  sledging 
season.  After  dinner  I  called  together  the  members  and  told 
them  what  I  proposed  to  do  in  the  coming  season,  stating  the 
reasons  and  asking  for  their  criticism.  Two  alternatives  lay 
before  us.  One  was  to  go  south  and  try  to  discover  the  fate  of 
Captain  Scott's  party.  I  thought  it  most  likely  that  they  had 
been  lost  in  a  crevasse  on  the  Beardmore  Glacier.  Whether 
their  bodies  could  be  found  or  not,  it  was  highly  desirable  to  go 
even  as  far  as  the  Upper  Glacier  Depot,  nearly  600  miles  from 


224  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [June 

the  base,  in  the  hope  of  finding  a  note  left  in  some  depot  which 
could  tell  whether  they  had  fulfilled  their  task  or  turned  back 
before  reaching  the  Pole.  On  general  grounds  it  was  of  great 
importance  not  to  leave  the  record  of  the  Expedition  incomplete, 
with  one  of  its  most  striking  chapters  a  blank. 

The  other  alternative  was  to  go  west  and  north  to  relieve 
Campbell  and  his  party,  always  supposing  they  had  survived  the 
winter.  If  they  had  come  through  the  winter,  every  day  of 
advancing  summer  would  improve  their  chances  of  living  on  in 
Terra  Nova  Bay.  At  the  same  time  there  was  good  prospect  of 
their  being  ultimately  relieved  by  the  ship,  if  indeed  she  had  not 
taken  them  off  in  the  autumn.  As  for  ourselves,  it  seemed  most 
improbable  that  we  could  journey  up  the  coast  owing  to  the  ab- 
normal state  of  the  ice.  Instead  of  being  frozen  for  the  winter, 
the  whole  Sound  to  the  north  and  west  of  Inaccessible  Island 
was  open  water  during  July;  the  ice  was  driven  out  by  the  ex- 
ceptionally strong  and  frequent  winds,  and  there  was  little  chance 
of  a  firm  road  forming  for  the  spring.  Under  these  conditions 
officers  and  men  unanimously  supported  the  decision  to  go  south. 

Nelson  at  the  end  of  June  had  started  some  lectures  upon 
heredity.  These  proved  to  be  of  great  interest  and  led  to 
several  discussions  amongst  the  men  and  officers.  They  were 
so  popular  that  they  had  to  be  continued  for  three  weeks.  The 
weather  in  June  as  a  whole  was  immeasurably  worse  than  it  had 
been  in  any  previous  season.  Comparison  of  the  records  will 
show  this  in  figures,  both  as  regards  wind  and  snow,  though  not 
in  actual  lowness  of  temperatures.  Our  hut  was  becoming  grad- 
ually snowed  in.  After  these  blizzards  in  the  dark  it  was  almost 
an  impossibility  to  walk  far  in  the  camp  because  of  the  huge 
drifts.  Pyaree  started  giving  some  trouble  with  her  capped 
knee  on  her  near  foreleg.  This  continued  for  some  time  and 
she  was  unable  to  get  exercise  and  lost  condition.  The  ice  which 
had  been  fairly  permanent  again  blew  out  in  a  large  bight  to  the 
south  of  the  Cape.  In  the  afternoon  now  we  occasionally  saw 
some  colour  in  the  northern  sky,  a  presage  of  the  light  that  we 
were  to  have.  One  never  appreciates  fully  the  blessing  of  an 
amount  of  light  until  one  has  been  through  a  good  deal  of  dark- 
ness. This  time  also  we  started  bagging  off  the  rations  for  the 
future  sledging  season.  Owing  to  the  probable  length  of  our 
search  these  were  of  considerable  bulk. 


MIDWINTER    DAY,    igi2 THE    OFFICERS 

Left  to  right,  Cherry-Garrard,  Wright,  Atkinson,  Nelson,  Gran 


MIDWINTER    DAY,     I9I2 THE    MEN 

Left  to  right,  Archer,  Williamson,  Crean,  Hooper,  Keohane,  Demetri 


i9i2]  PLANS    FOR    THE    SEARCH  225 

On  July  the  16th  we  had  probably  the  most  beautiful  day  of 
the  year.  The  whole  northern  sky  was  filled  with  opalescent 
clouds,  and  owing  to  some  white  ice  instead  of  the  black  water 
in  the  North  Bay,  the  increase  of  light  seemed  very  appreciable. 
The  mules  were  now  exercised  regularly  on  the  ice  in  the  South 
Bay,  and  by  this  means  their  leaders  were  able  to  take  them  over 
greater  distances.  Their  condition  began  gradually  to  improve, 
and  the  way  they  had  come  through  the  winter  so  far  reflected 
great  credit  on  the  care  taken  by  Lashly. 

On  the  19th  the  plans  for  the  Southern  journey  were  laid 
before  the  other  members.  Debenham,  who  had  been  suffering 
from  an  old  knee  injury  at  football,  and  Archer  were  the  two 
members  who  would  have  to  remain  by  the  hut. 

It  was  a  sad  blow  to  both  of  them  to  realise  their  position, 
but  they  accepted  it  cheerfully.  The  plan  was  to  provide  enough 
provisions  to  enable  two  parties,  each  a  unit  of  four,  to  ascend 
the  Beardmore  Glacier,  and  two  dog  teams  with  a  unit  of  three 
men  to  return  from  some  point  not  as  yet  settled.  Of  the  men 
ascending  the  glacier,  four  were  to  remain  at  the  Cloud-maker 
and  collect  geological  specimens,  photograph,  and  do  survey 
work.  They  would  then  proceed  to  the  foot  of  the  glacier  and 
continue  doing  this  same  work  until  the  return  of  the  others,  for 
all  this  time  they  were  needed  as  a  support  by  the  advance  party. 
This  advance  party,  the  other  unit  of  four,  would  ascend  to  the 
top  of  the  glacier  if  it  were  necessary  to  go  so  far.  On  their 
return  to  the  foot  of  the  glacier  both  units  would  march  home. 
At  this  time  it  was  believed  by  most  of  us  that  an  accident  had 
occurred  to  the  Southern  Party,  probably  at  the  lower  reaches 
of  the  Beardmore,  in  bad  weather,  and  that  sickness  had  noth- 
ing to  do  with  the  disaster. 

As  there  was  no  food  either  for  dogs,  mules,  or  men  in  any 
of  the  depots,  the  initial  starting  weights  would  have  to  be  very 
large.  To  help  as  far  as  possible  some  small  depot  journeys 
would  be  made  in  the  spring.  During  the  whole  winter  so  far  the 
cheerfulness  of  the  party  had  been  splendid  under  the  most  trying 
conditions,  but  there  now  seemed  to  be  an  added  sprightliness 
with  the  return  of  light. 

Nelson  had  been  occupying  his  time  by  a  very  ingenious 
method  of  predicting  occultations.  He  predicted  altogether 
nearly  fifty,  but  unfortunately  was  only  able  to  get  one  or  two 

VOL.   II — 15 


226  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION 

observations.  These  observations  were  for  obtaining  the  exact 
longitude.  The  whole  Sound  at  this  time  to  the  north  and  west 
of  Inaccessible  Island  was  open  water.  We  had  two  enormous 
drifts  of  nine  to  ten  feet  high  leading  from  the  door  of  the  annexe 
down  to  the  sea.  The  latter  end  of  July  the  weather  broke  up 
entirely  and  we  had  a  repetition  of  our  usual  blizzards  for  the 
season. 


CHAPTER    IV 

In  August,  with  the  gradual  return  of  light,  we  were  able  to  get 
about  more  and  consequently  took  more  exercise.  A  small  ski 
slope  was  made  running  down  from  the  rear  of  the  Hut  and  also 
a  small  jump  was  fixed  by  Gran.  On  fine  days  there  was  a  con- 
tinual stream  of  men  labouring  slowly  up  the  slope  and  making 
their  way  down  again  with  varying  success.  The  sea  ice  condi- 
tions still  continued  bad  and  there  was  some  doubt  now  as  to 
whether  we  should  be  able  to  make  our  way  over  the  sea  ice  to 
Hut  Point. 

On  August  1 2  for  the  first  time  we  saw  the  sun's  rays  on  the 
summit  of  Erebus  and  the  smoke  rising  from  the  crater  was 
painted  a  beautiful  pink.  One  of  the  difficulties  that  we  had  to 
encounter  for  the  next  sledging  season  was  the  lack  of  sledge- 
meters.  We  had  only  one  left,  but  Lashly,  our  handy  man,  was 
trying  his  hand  at  the  manufacture  of  another  under  the  direction 
of  Nelson.  By  means  of  a  bicycle  wheel  and  the  front  fork  of 
a  bicycle  we  got  our  lead  and  wheel,  while  the  register  was  made 
from  the  meter  attached  to  the  dynamo.  This  looked  exceed- 
ingly promising,  and  after  it  had  been  used  over  short  distances 
gave  very  good  results  eventually.  On  the  Barrier  it  proved  of 
assistance  up  to  One  Ton  Depot  and  then  had  to  be  abandoned. 

The  new  sledges,  called  Finnesskis,  were  the  cause  of  much 
discussion.  Six  had  been  ordered  from  Hagen  of  Christiania, 
and  these  arrived  with  tapered  runners,  the  breadth  of  the  runner 
in  front  being  4  inches,  diminishing  to  2^2  on  the  after  part  of 
the  sledge.  We  tried  these  sledges  with  the  old  12-foot,  man- 
hauling  over  various  surfaces  and  with  equal  loads.  In  every 
case  the  new  sledges  ran  more  easily,  but  it  was  impossible  to 
judge  if  there  was  sufficient  bearing  surface  for  them  with  heavy 
loads  on  the  soft  Barrier  surface.  They  eventually  proved  to  be 
of  the  greatest  service,  and  animals  or  men  could  move  loads 
on  these  sledges  which  it  was  impossible  for  them  to  move  with 
the  ordinary  12-foot  and  broad  runner.    The  idea  of  the  sledge 


228  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [August 

was  that  the  broad  front  portion  should  run  over  and  smooth 
and  prepare  the  track  for  the  after  tapered  portion. 

There  was  very  little  alteration  needed  in  any  of  the  other 
gear.  Each  individual  had  his  personal  likes  and  dislikes  and 
adapted  his  gear  accordingly.  In  the  rations  there  was  only 
a  very  slight  alteration,  our  old  summit  ration  being  adhered  to 
with  the  addition  of  extra  sugar,  a  stick  of  chocolate,  and  one 
onion  per  man  per  day. 

On  August  22  we  celebrated  the  return  of  the  sun  with  a 
special  dinner,  and  ended  up  proceedings  with  a  sing-song.  It 
was  not  until  the  23rd,  however,  that  the  sun  was  seen,  and  then 
only  by  Nelson,  who  saw  its  upper  rim  from  the  top  of  the  ramp. 
Almost  every  day  now  we  saw  the  earth  shadows  cast  by  Erebus 
and  Mount  Discovery.  These  looked  like  dark  cones  of  shadow 
running  across  the  sky  from  east  to  west. 

During  these  bad  conditions  of  ice  in  the  winter  we  neces- 
sarily had  to  be  careful  of  the  dogs.  Some  of  these  were  con- 
firmed hunters,  and  it  was  through  the  ice  going  out  during  a 
blizzard  that  we  lost  the  best  leader  that  we  had.  Noogis  was 
a  dog  who  had  been  Demetri's  leader  on  the  southern  journey 
in  the  early  part  of  the  year;  he  had  never  lost  heart  on  that 
journey  and  had  been  a  great  factor  in  cheering  the  other  dogs 
and  getting  them  along  as  well  as  they  did.  In  the  earlier  part 
of  the  year  he  had  once  before  been  taken  out  to  sea  by  the  ice 
blowing  away,  but  on  that  occasion  he  made  his  way  back  by  the 
icefoot  around  the  Barne  Glacier.  On  this  occasion  he  was 
blown  out  during  the  blizzard  and  we  never  saw  him  again. 

Our  feeding  during  this  winter,  with  the  idea  of  preventing 
scurvy,  had  a  very  welcome  addition  in  the  shape  of  fresh  vege- 
tables. These  consisted  of  potatoes  and  onions  which  had  been 
brought  down  by  the  ship.  As  the  party  was  so  reduced  in  num- 
bers, this  store  lasted  practically  throughout  the  winter  and 
proved  very  acceptable.  In  September  we  also  had  another  addi- 
tion in  the  shape  of  the  Emperor  penguins;  they  came  up  on  the 
ice  in  the  South  Bay  in  very  large  numbers,  and  nearly  every 
day  for  some  time  we  were  able  to  secure  fresh  food.  The  flesh 
of  the  Emperor  penguin  is  better  and  much  less  unpalatable  than 
seal;  it  was  appreciated  by  the  men  where  seal  would  only  have 
been  eaten  as  a  preventive  measure. 

The  number  of  dogs  who  were  fit  for  work  on  the  Barrier 


i9i2]  A   FIRE  229 

made  exactly  two  teams.  This  left  at  the  hut  seven  dogs  who 
could  work  but  were  unable  to  stand  the  trials  of  a  long  journey. 
Debenham  started  to  exercise  these  dogs  for  geological  purposes 
around  the  hut.  Small  as  the  team  was,  it  made  up  in  obstinacy 
and  trouble  for  its  size. 

The  chief  trouble  was  getting  away  from  the  Cape  down  a 
pretty  steep  ice-foot,  and  the  old  leader,  Stareek,  generally  refus- 
ing to  do  his  duty  when  he  was  within  reach  of  the  hut,  their 
direction  at  first  was  uncertain. 

On  September  3,  Wright,  Debenham,  Cherry-Garrard,  and 
I  made  a  small  trip  over  the  Barne  Glacier  to  Cape  Royds, 
Shackleton's  winter  quarters.  Our  main  object  was  to  secure  a 
few  luxuries  and  to  leave  some  spirit  and  apparatus  there  for 
work  to  be  done  amongst  the  penguins  in  the  summer.  We 
found  on  arriving  that  the  bays  and  the  whole  of  the  Sound  as 
far  as  we  could  see  were  practically  free  from  ice. 

On  September  5,  during  a  stiff  blow,  our  chimney  caught  fire. 
The  chimney  consisted  of  an  upright  piece  which  went  through 
the  hut  about  the  middle.  A  galley  and  a  stove  were  at  either 
end  of  the  hut;  from  each  of  these  a  funnel  ran  and  connected 
with  the  central  upright  piece.  The  fire  started  at  first  in  the 
centre  and  gradually  spread  down  towards  the  galley  or  cooking 
range.  We  got  the  flames  under  control  by  covering  the  chimney 
on  the  outside  with  large  slabs  of  snow,  the  inside  of  the  hut 
meanwhile  being  full  of  smoke  and  smuts.  After  some  trouble 
the  funnel  was  disjointed,  taken  out  and  swept  through. 

During  the  worst  time  the  funnel  for  nearly  half  its  length 
was  red-hot  and  glowing,  and  the  heat  inside  the  hut  was  very 
uncomfortable. 

On  the  6th,  with  the  idea  of  giving  the  members  exercise, 
Nelson,  Gran,  Crean  and  Archer  started  for  Cape  Royds  over 
the  Barne  Glacier.  Gran  made  a  complete  list  of  all  the  stores 
at  Shackleton's  quarters  and  the  party  returned  on  the  following 
day. 

The  exercise  of  the  mules  was  now  carried  on  over  a  longer 
period,  sledges  were  made  up  and  they  were  harnessed  in  and 
drew  their  loads  on  alternate  days.  The  only  mule  that  gave 
us  any  serious  trouble  was  Gulab;  but  Williamson  throughout 
was  most  tactful  and  painstaking  with  this  mule,  who  proved 
eventually  to  be  the  best  beast  that  we  had.     Pyaree's  capped 


230  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [September 

knee  started  now  to  give  us  a  great  deal  of  anxiety,  and  up  to 
the  last  week  in  October  before  she  started  we  thought  that  she 
would  be  unable  to  go.  As  it  was,  she  went  on  to  the  Barrier 
with  a  stiff  foreleg,  but  she  worked  splendidly  as  the  strain  wore 
off  and  proved  to  be  the  second  best  mule  of  the  lot. 

Owing  to  the  uncertain  conditions  of  the  ice  it  was  essential 
to  remove  as  many  stores  as  possible  to  Hut  Point.  On  Septem- 
ber 1 8  to  22,  a  party  went  there  with  dog  teams,  taking  down  a 
load  of  stores  and  with  the  idea  of  putting  the  hut  in  order.  The 
hut  had  nearly  been  buried  by  the  inclement  season,  but  after  a 
great  deal  of  digging  had  been  done  it  was  made  more  habitable. 
The  hut  at  Cape  Evans  had  been  very  much  snowed  up  by  this 
bad  season  and  our  roof  in  one  part  began  to  sag  from  the  weight 
of  snow  upon  it.  This  was  continually  removed  and  as  continually 
was  replaced  by  the  next  blizzard.  During  the  remainder  of  this 
month  several  trips  were  made  by  the  dog  teams  to  Hut  Point, 
taking  down  stores.  The  ponies  also  were  given  extra  food  so 
as  to  get  them  in  better  condition  for  their  trip  on  the  Barrier. 

It  was  proposed  after  the  previous  year  to  make  their  allow- 
ance 1 1  lbs.  per  mule  per  day,  a  ration  consisting  of  oil  cake  and 
oats  in  the  proportion  of  two  of  oil  cake  to  one  of  oats. 

On  September  26  we  had  a  partial  eclipse  of  the  moon  which 
we  saw  very  clearly.  The  maximum  shadow  fell  just  before  mid- 
night, and  we  thought  we  should  be  unable  to  see  it,  for  the  moon 
rose  behind  clouds  to  the  north  of  Erebus,  but  it  cleared  in  time 
and  Nelson  was  able  to  get  his  telescope  fixed  up.  Our  winter 
now  was  practically  ended.  With  the  return  of  light  the  health 
and  cheerfulness  of  the  party,  which  had  been  excellent  through- 
out, improved  still  more,  and  we  knew  now  that  only  a  month 
intervened  before  we  should  be  away  on  the  Barrier.  Scientific 
work  had  been  carried  on  throughout  the  winter,  although  in 
certain  branches  this  had  been  necessarily  prohibited  by  the  ab- 
sence of  sea  ice. 

On  October  12  Debenham,  Demetri,  Cherry-Garrard,  and 
I  went  down  to  Hut  Point,  and  on  October  14  took  the  two  dog 
teams  out  to  lay  a  depot  12  miles  south  of  Corner  Camp.  This 
consisted  mainly  of  pony  and  dog  food  and  was  essential  in  order 
to  relieve  the  ponies  over  the  first  four  days  of  the  journey,  on 
which  they  would  have  to  encounter  heavy  surfaces.  On  the  re- 
turn, as  one  of  the  dog  teams  was  crossing  a  large  crevasse,  four 


i9i2]  DEMETRI    DEPOT  431 

of  the  dogs  broke  through  the  crust  and  the  sledge  was  practi- 
cally anchored  by  their  weight.  With  the  help  of  the  other  dogs 
these  were  gradually  hauled  out,  popping  out  of  the  holes  like 
corks  from  a  bottle.  As  the  sledge  and  team  were  on  the 
crevasse  at  the  same  time  it  was  fairly  anxious  work.  The  dogs 
bolted  and  a  driving-stick  was  left  by  the  edge  of  the  crevasse. 
This  was  a  good  but  unintentional  mark  by  which  to  avoid  it  in 
future.  The  depot  was  called  Demetri  Depot  in  honor  of  the 
Russian  dog-boy. 

On  October  19  four  of  the  mules  came  down  from  Cape 
Evans  to  Hut  Point,  bringing  loads;  they  did  the  journey  splen- 
didly and  gave  great  promise  of  their  future  usefulness.  Deben- 
ham  meanwhile  had  been  making  a  geological  survey  of  the 
peninsula  and  Cherry-Garrard  had  been  helping  him. 

On  October  25  Cherry-Garrard  and  Demetri  with  two  dog 
teams  went  out  to  Corner  Camp,  taking  with  them  a  further 
supply  of  dog  biscuits  and  fodder.  This  was  the  last  journey 
before  we  started  south  on  October  29. 


CHAPTER   V 

On  October  29  the  mules  all  came  down  with  their  leaders  to 
Hut  Point  and  everything  was  ready  for  a  start  on  the  journey 
south.  It  was  decided  to  march  at  night  as  we  had  done  in  the 
previous  season,  so  that  the  mules  would  be  moving  during  this 
cold  time  and  camp  during  the  warm  portion  of  the  day. 

At  7.30  p.m.  on  October  30  the  seven  mules  and  eight  men 
making  up  the  Pony  Party  started  south.  C.  S.  Wright  was  in 
command,  as  he  was  a  skilled  navigator.  The  mules  and  their 
leaders  were  as  follows : 

E.  W.  Nelson,  leading  Khan  Sahib;  T.  Gran,  leading  Lai 
Khan;  W.  Lashly,  leading  Pyaree;  T.  Crean,  leading  Rani; 
T.  Williamson,  leading  Gulab;  P.  Keohane,  leading  Begum; 
F.  J.  Hooper,  leading  Abdullah. 

Wright  was  in  command  and  went  ahead,  setting  the  course 
and  standing  by  to  give  any  help  he  could.  The  mules'  weights 
up  to  Corner  Camp  would  not  exceed  500  lbs.  This  was  because 
of  the  deep  and  bad  surface  usually  occurring  over  this  area. 
The  tents  were  under  Wright  and  Nelson.  It  was  proposed  to 
march  twelve  geographical  miles  every  night,  but,  as  their  prog- 
ress was  uncertain,  the  question  of  this  distance  was  left  entirely 
to  Wright's  judgment. 

Pyaree  started  lame,  but  within  a  few  days  had  lost  any  slight 
trouble  which  she  had.  Gulab  had  proved  that  he  would  chafe 
easily  with  the  breast  harness,  and  in  his  case  a  collar  was  taken 
as  well.  Their  first  day  they  did  twelve  miles,  camping  about 
six  miles  to  the  S.E.  of  Safety  Camp.  Where  the  sea  ice  joined 
the  Barrier  there  was  a  wide  tide-crack,  and  Khan  Sahib  un- 
luckily fell  partially  into  this;  he  was  a  very  quiet  animal,  and 
with  the  aid  of  an  Alpine  rope  and  hauling  on  his  forelegs  they 
got  him  up  and  over  on  to  the  surface. 

The  next  day  they  made  good  another  twelve  miles  over  a 
slightly  worse  surface,  camping  within  six  miles  of  Corner  Camp. 
Owing  to  the  dogs'  experience  in  the  earlier  part  of  the  year,  we 


THE    RAMP  AND   THE    SLOPES    OF    EREBUS. 


DOG-TEAMS   AND    MULES  233 

realised  that  this  area  was  more  crevassed  than  it  had  been  pre- 
viously. I  had  left  it  to  Wright's  judgment  as  to  whether  the 
leaders  of  the  mules  were  to  be  linked  up  by  the  Alpine  rope  in 
going  over  these  last  six  miles.  He  thought  it  fit  to  do  this  and 
they  proceeded  in  that  order.  The  surface  they  encountered  was 
exceedingly  deep  and  heavy,  and  only  two  of  the  mules  struck 
crevasses  and  these,  luckily,  without  any  mishap.  The  mules 
were  so  tired  when  they  had  finished  the  six  miles  to  Corner 
Camp  that  Wright  decided  to  remain  there  for  half  a  day. 

On  November  1  the  two  dog-teams,  with  Cherry-Garrard, 
Demetri,  and  myself,  started  to  follow  the  mules.  The  dogs' 
loads,  which  had  been  made  out  to  allow  about  75  lbs.  per  dog, 
proved  to  be  heavy  from  the  start;  the  progress  was  exceedingly 
slow  and  we  completed  fifteen  miles  for  the  first  day.  The  next 
day,  again  over  a  very  bad  surface,  we  completed  another  fifteen 
miles  and  reached  Corner  Camp.  There  we  had  a  very  reassur- 
ing note  from  Wright.  He  said  that  the  mules  were  going  well 
together  and,  instead  of  having  to  be  split  up  into  fast  and  slow 
mules,  they  broke  camp  and  pitched  camp,  with  one  exception, 
all  together,  for  Khan  Sahib,  Nelson's  mule,  was  peculiarly  slow, 
and  in  the  temperature  we  were  encountering  on  the  march  Nel- 
son found  it  of  the  greatest  difficulty  to  keep  himself  at  all  warm. 
This  mule  would  usually  lose  three-fourths  of  a  mile  on  the 
others  while  they  were  completing  two  miles.  Nelson  invented  a 
method  of  walking  two  steps  forward  and  jumping  one  back,  in 
order  to  keep  his  circulation  up  to  the  mark. 

They  proceeded,  building  cairns  of  snow  at  intervals  of  from 
two  to  four  miles  in  order  that  we  might  follow  their  tracks. 

I  saw  from  the  way  that  the  dogs  were  going  that  we  should 
have  great  difficulty,  with  their  present  weights,  in  catching  the 
mules  before  they  reached  One  Ton  Depot.  On  Wright's  satis- 
factory report  I  decided  to  entrust  everything  to  the  mules  and  to 
use  the  dogs  as  a  means  of  lightening  their  heavy  loads.  The 
mules'  weights  had  increased  from  Corner  Camp  up  to  nearly 
700  lbs.  per  mule.  This  was  far  in  excess  of  any  weights  hauled 
by  the  ponies  in  the  previous  season,  and  here  we  saw  the  ad- 
vantage of  having  tapered  runners  to  our  sledges.  The  beasts, 
with  comparative  ease,  were  able  to  move  these  heavy  loads  on 
the  sledges,  where  they  would  have  been  unable  to  do  so  with 
the  broad  runners  of  the  previous  12-foot  sledge. 


234  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [November 

"Wright  proceeded  the  next  day  to  Demetri  Depot,  twelve 
miles  south  from  Corner  Camp.  The  mules  here  took  on  their 
full  loads  and  proceeded  south  before  we  could  get  up  to  them. 
Here  the  remainder  of  the  surplus  weights  of  the  dogs  was  left. 

Kasoi,  one  of  the  dogs,  had  refused  for  that  day  to  work; 
no  amount  of  beating  would  induce  him  to  do  so.  We  therefore 
took  him  off  the  trace  and  tied  him  with  the  harness  to  the  rear 
of  the  sledge.  Demetri's  team,  who  were  following,  realised  that 
something  was  wrong  with  this  dog:  they  pulled  their  very  hard- 
est with  the  idea  of  getting  up  to  him  and  finishing  him.  Kasoi 
realised  what  this  meant,  and  it  decided  him  in  favour  of  work 
as  nothing  else  could  have  done.  He  resumed  his  pulling,  and 
never  slackened  his  trace  afterwards. 

On  the  night  of  the  4th  and  the  morning  of  the  5th  of  No- 
vember we  had  got  on  to  a  very  good  surface;  we  started  early 
and  light,  in  order  to  reach  the  mules  before  they  had  started, 
and  this  we  eventually  did  after  we  had  made  our  twelve  miles. 
In  view  of  their  condition  and  the  tired  dogs  I  decided  to  give 
animals  and  men  a  day's  rest  at  this  place.  The  weather,  which 
had  been  windy  and  drifting  up  to  now,  had  begun  to  clear  and 
would  give  the  animals  some  chance  of  drying  off,  as  well  as  hav- 
ing a  good  night's  rest. 

Gulab,  Williamson's  mule,  had  been  badly  chafed  by  the 
breast  harness  on  his  shoulder.  Williamson  had  changed  him 
to  his  collar  and  almost  immediately  after  the  first  day  of  this 
he  chafed  again.  Throughout  the  whole  of  his  journey  Wil- 
liamson took  the  very  greatest  care  of  his  animal  and  invented 
various  new  and  clever  designs  for  taking  the  weight  of  his 
draught  off  his  chafed  shoulder.  Eventually  Gulab's  tail  was 
brought  as  an  aid  to  this.  By  means  of  a  back  strap  connecting 
his  collar  and  his  tail  most  of  the  drag  was  taken  off  his  shoulder 
and,  under  these  conditions,  the  chafe  began  to  heal. 

About  this  time,  as  the  lights  were  very  strong,  the  mules 
began  to  show  signs  of  snow-blindness.  It  was  then  that  their 
snow-goggles  were  tried  for  the  first  time.  We  found  that  they 
were  of  the  greatest  use  and  generally  stayed  on  while  the  mules 
were  on  their  lines;  they  were  of  the  greatest  comfort  to  the 
animals. 

The  mules  would  not  eat  their  ration  of  oil  cake  and  oats 
at  all.    They  showed  a  liking  for  everything  except  their  ration. 


M 

w 

H 
P 

O 
en 


i9»]  WAYS   OF    DOGS  AND    MULES  235 

They  would  eat  man  or  dog  biscuits,  tea-leaves  and  tobacco,  ash 
and  various  portions  of  garments,  with  the  greatest  of  relish, 
but  they  needed  the  utmost  care  and  coaxing  to  be  induced  to 
touch  their  ration  at  all.  They  were  picketed  by  their  forelegs, 
as  the  ponies  had  been  in  the  previous  year,  and  they  showed  the 
greatest  ingenuity  in  getting  themselves  free  and  strolling  about 
the  camp,  testing  various  articles  of  the  store  goods. 

The  same  routine  was  kept  by  this  party.  The  morning 
march  was  seven  miles  in  length;  they  then  camped  and  had  tea, 
which  lasted  for  about  one  hour  and  a  half.  When  camp  was 
struck,  they  marched  on  for  five  miles  more,  completing  the 
twelve  geographical  miles  for  the  day.  Their  speed  on  march 
was  favourable,  compared  with  that  of  the  ponies  of  the  previous 
year.  Our  surfaces  were  so  hard  and  good  that  the  mules  did 
not  with  their  small  hooves  sink  appreciably  into  the  snow. 

The  dogs'  weights  here  having  been  much  reduced,  they  were 
able  to  relieve  the  mules  to  a  large  extent.  The  routine  of  the 
march  was  now  changed:  from  one  to  two  hours  after  the  mules 
had  started,  the  dogs  followed  them.  The  change  in  the  dogs 
and  in  their  rate  of  progress  was  now  wonderful :  when  they  had 
something  to  follow,  and  especially  when  the  mules  came  into 
view,  they  proceeded  during  the  whole  of  the  day  at  a  full  gallop. 

Abdullah,  Hooper's  mule,  had  constituted  himself  leader 
throughout,  and  continued  so  until  his  return  from  the  Barrier 
towards  the  end  of  November.  This  was  a  difficult  feat,  as  the 
first  mule  has  always  the  added  hardship  of  having  to  break  the 
track. 

The  surface  was  extremely  good,  hard,  and  almost  marbled, 
and  the  sledges  followed  the  animals  easily. 

Each  night,  on  camping,  a  wall  was  built  for  the  mules,  con- 
sisting of  large  slabs  of  hard  snow  dug  in  the  Barrier;  they 
were  a  considerable  amount  of  trouble,  but  afforded  shelter  to  the 
leasts  from  the  wind  and  drift.  The  mules  had  so  eaten  their 
covers  that  it  required  much  ingenuity  to  make  these  useful  for 
protecting  the  beasts. 

The  day's  rest  had  done  everyone  good,  and  on  a  glorious 
day  we  proceeded  and  soon  finished  the  twelve  miles  for  the  day. 

On  the  night  of  the  6th  and  7th  we  started  at  10.30,  and, 
on  a  slightly  worse  surface,  did  seven  miles  up  to  lunch.  All 
along  this  way  we  had  been  building  cairns  of  snow  at  intervals 


23  6  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [November 

of  from  two  to  four  miles  apart.  The  day,  which  was  cloudy, 
cleared  towards  morning,  and  was  much  colder.  During  this 
time  we  were  marching  in  temperature  which  ranged  from  minus 
20  to  the  lowest  of  minus  29.  In  the  day-time,  when  the  sun  had 
reached  its  full  height,  the  temperature  would  rise  almost  to 
zero. 

On  the  night  of  the  7th  and  morning  of  the  8th  of  Novem- 
ber we  made  the  old  Bluff  Depot  in  79 °  South  and  re-built  it, 
placing  a  new  flag  of  black  bunting  on  the  pole.  Here  we  left 
two  boxes  of  dog  biscuit  for  the  dogs  returning  on  their  journey 
back  from  the  south.  The  surface  again  continued  good,  and 
never  in  any  previous  experience  had  it  been  so  hard  and  good 
as  far  south  as  this. 

On  the  night  of  the  8th  and  9th  we  continued  over  this  same 
good  surface,  before  a  slight  north-easterly  wind  and  a  cold  day. 
The  dogs  had  now  again  begun  to  fail.  They  seemed  to  lack  en- 
thusiasm and  spirit;  I  believe  that  in  their  case  they  had  had  too 
much  work  upon  the  Barrier  and  were  spiritless  and  easily  de- 
pressed by  the  lack  of  anything  to  see.  In  the  previous  year  we 
had  had  certain  '  cuts  '  of  land  for  the  Bluff  Depot  and  Corner 
Camp.  It  was  quite  easy  to  see  from  these  that  both  camps  had 
changed  their  positions  owing  to  the  gradual  movement  of  the 
Barrier,  year  by  year.  Approximately,  and  judging  very  roughly, 
the  movement  in  either  case  had  been  about  half  a  mile  for  the 
year. 

,  On  the  night  of  the  9th  and  10th  we  came  again  to  a  curious 
phenomenon  of  the  Barrier  surface.  As  the  mules  proceeded 
ahead  of  us  loud  crackling  roars  could  be  heard  from  time  to 
time.  These  were  caused  by  a  subsidence  of  the  surface  over  a 
large  area,  as  an  animal  or  man  trod  upon  it.  The  depth  of  the 
subsidence  was  only  a  fraction  of  an  inch,  but  the  resulting  report 
was  exceedingly  loud  and  startling,  if  unexpected.  The  mules 
soon  settled  down  to  the  roars  and  became  accustomed  to  them, 
but  it  was  always  a  source  of  great  interest  to  the  dogs.  As  soon 
as  one  of  these  subsidences  with  its  roar  came  to  them  they 
started  off  at  full  gallop,  expecting  at  any  moment  some  animal 
to  appear.  They  had  been  accustomed  in  Siberia  to  dig  out 
animals  lying  up  snowed  in.  These  subsidences  were  a  great 
help  and  kept  the  dogs  interested,  and  they  ran  very  well. 

On  the  night  of  the  10th  and  morning  of  the  nth  we  made 


THE    LAST    REST 
(The  Grave  of  Scott,  Wilson  and  Bowers) 


i9»]  LEAKAGE    OF    OIL  237 

One  Ton  Depot,  coming  up  five  and  three-quarters  miles  to  it. 
I  decided  to  give  men  and  animals  a  half  day's  rest  here.  It  was 
a  beautiful  sunny  and  bright  day  but  with  some  wind.  Here 
we  found  the  stores  which  had  been  left  by  Demetri  and  Cherry- 
Garrard.  One  of  the  tins  of  paraffin  on  top  of  the  cairns  had 
leaked  and  spoilt  some  of  the  stores  placed  at  the  foot  of  the 
camp.    There  was  no  hole  of  any  kind  in  this  tin. 

Our  progress  up  to  this  point  had  been  made  in  one  day  and 
a  half  less  time  than  it  had  taken  us  on  the  previous  year  and 
that  was  with  the  mules  drawing  full  loads  for  the  whole  of  the 
time.  There  was  no  doubt  that  our  surface  had  been  infinitely 
better  than  in  the  previous  season.  Everything  was  favourable 
and  the  health  of  men  and  animals  was  splendid. 

On  the  night  of  the  nth  and  morning  of  the  12th,  after  we 
had  marched  eleven  miles  due  south  of  One  Ton,  we  found  the 
tent.  It  was  an  object  partially  snowed  up  and  looking  like  a 
cairn.  Before  it  were  the  ski  sticks  and  in  front  of  them  a  bam- 
boo which  probably  was  the  mast  of  the  sledge.  The  tent  was 
practically  on  the  line  of  cairns  which  we  had  built  in  the  previous 
season.  It  was  within  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  the  remains  of  the 
cairn,  which  showed  as  a  small  hummock  beneath  the  snow. 

Inside  the  tent  were  the  bodies  of  Captain  Scott,  Doctor  Wil- 
son, and  Lieutenant  Bowers.  They  had  pitched  their  tent  well, 
and  it  had  withstood  all  the  blizzards  of  an  exceptionally  hard 
winter.  Each  man  of  the  expedition  recognised  the  bodies. 
From  Captain  Scott's  diary  I  found  his  reasons  for  this  disas- 
ter. When  the  men  had  been  assembled  I  read  to  them  these 
reasons,  the  place  of  death  of  Petty  Officer  Evans  and  the  story 
of  Captain  Oates'  heroic  end. 

We  recovered  all  their  gear  and  dug  out  the  sledge  with 
their  belongings  on  it.  Amongst  these  were  35  lbs.  of  very  im- 
portant geological  specimens  which  had  been  collected  on  the 
moraines  of  the  Beardmore  Glacier;  at  Doctor  Wilson's  request 
they  had  stuck  to  these  up  to  the  very  end,  even  when  disaster 
stared  them  in  the  face  and  they  knew  that  the  specimens  were 
so  much  weight  added  to  what  they  had  to  pull. 

When  everything  had  been  gathered  up,  we  covered  them 
with  the  outer  tent  and  read  the  burial  service.  From  this  time 
until  well  into  the  next  day  we  started  to  build  a  mighty  cairn 
above  them.    This  cairn  was  finished  the  next  morning,  and  upon 


238  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [November 

it  a  rough  cross  was  placed,  made  from  the  greater  portion  of 
two  skis,  and  on  either  side  were  up-ended  two  sledges,  and  they 
were  fixed  firmly  in  the  snow,  to  be  an  added  mark.  Between 
the  eastern  sledge  and  the  cairn  a  bamboo  was  placed,  containing 
a  metal  cylinder,  and  in  this  the  following  record  was  left: 

'  November  12,  191 2,  lat.  79  degrees,  50  mins.  South.  This 
cross  and  cairn  are  erected  over  the  bodies  of  Captain  Scott, 
C.V.O.,  R.N.,  Doctor  E.  A.  Wilson,  M.B.,  B.C.,  Cantab.,  and 
Lieutenant  H.  R.  Bowers,  Royal  Indian  Marine — a  slight  token 
to  perpetuate  their  successful  and  gallant  attempt  to  reach  the 
Pole.  This  they  did  on  January  17,  191 2,  after  the  Norwegian 
expedition  had  already  done  so.  Inclement  weather  with  lack 
of  fuel  was  the  cause  of  their  death.  Also  to  commemorate  their 
two  gallant  comrades,  Captain  L.  E.  G.  Oates  of  the  Inniskilling 
Dragoons,  who  walked  to  his  death  in  a  blizzard  to  save  his  com- 
rades about  eighteen  miles  south  of  this  position;  also  of  Sea- 
man Edgar  Evans,  who  died  at  the  foot  of  the  Beardmore  Gla- 
cier. "The  Lord  gave  and  the  Lord  taketh  away;  blessed  be 
the  name  of  the  Lord."  ' 

This  was  signed  by  all  the  members  of  the  party.  I  decided 
then  to  march  twenty  miles  south  with  the  whole  of  the  expedition 
and  try  to  find  the  body  of  Captain  Oates. 

For  half  that  day  we  proceeded  south,  as  far  as  possible 
along  the  line  of  the  previous  season's  march.  On  one  of  the 
old  pony  walls,  which  was  simply  marked  by  a  ridge  of  the  sur- 
face of  the  snow,  we  found  Oates'  sleeping-bag,  which  they  had 
brought  along  with  them  after  he  had  left. 

The  next  day  we  proceeded  thirteen  more  miles  south,  hoping 
and  searching  to  find  his  body.  When  we  arrived  at  the  place 
where  he  had  left  them,  we  saw  that  there  was  no  chance  of 
doing  so.  The  kindly  snow  had  covered  his  body,  giving  him  a 
fitting  burial.  Here,  again,  as  near  to  the  site  of  the  death  as  we 
could  judge,  we  built  another  cairn  to  his  memory,  and  placed 
thereon  a  small  cross  and  the  following  record:  'Hereabouts 
died  a  very  gallant  gentleman,  Captain  L.  E.  G.  Oates  of  the 
Inniskilling  Dragoons.  In  March  19 12,  returning  from  the 
Pole,  he  walked  willingly  to  his  death  in  a  blizzard,  to  try  and 
save  his  comrades,  beset  by  hardships.  This  note  is  left  by  the 
relief  Expedition  of  19 12.' 

It  was  signed  by  Cherry  and  myself. 


i9»]  RETURN    OF   CAMPBELL  239 

From  here  I  decided  to  turn  back  and  to  take,  as  far  as  pos- 
sible, all  the  stores  to  Hut  Point.  I  then  thought  that  by  any 
means  that  lay  within  our  power  we  should  try  to  reach  Lieu- 
tenant Campbell  and  his  party.  As  the  sea  ice  would  in  all  likeli- 
hood be  impossible,  we  should  probably  have  to  take  the  route 
along  the  plateau,  ascending  the  first  Ferrar  Glacier  and  making 
our  way  along  the  plateau  as  far  as  we  were  able. 

On  the  second  day  we  came  again  to  the  resting-place  of  the 
three  and  bade  them  there  a  final  farewell.  There  alone  in  their 
greatness  they  will  lie  without  change  or  bodily  decay,  with  the 
most  fitting  tomb  in  the  world  above  them. 

Our  journey  back  was  uneventful.  Two  of  the  mules  had  to 
be  killed  because  of  their  condition  and  to  give  food  to  the  dogs. 
Five  returned  from  the  Barrier,  and  for  the  remainder  of  their 
days  had  as  good  a  time  as  we  could  give  them. 

On  the  morning  of  November  25  two  dog  teams,  with  Cherry- 
Garrard,  Demetri,  and  myself,  having  pushed  ahead  of  the  mules, 
reached  Hut  Point.  Cherry  went  into  the  hut  and  returned  with 
a  letter  and  his  face  transformed.  I  think  we  had  then  the  best 
news  that  any  men  could  wish  for  many,  many  a  long  weary  day. 
Campbell  and  his  party,  having  all  survived  the  winter,  had  made 
their  way  down,  arriving  at  Hut  Point  on  November  6. 

We  proceeded  in  all  haste  to  Cape  Evans,  there  to  have  the 
goodly  sight  of  their  rounding  countenances.  They  had  filled  out 
wonderfully  on  the  good  and  unusual  food,  and  each  and  every 
one  was  now  heavier  than  he  had  ever  been  in  his  life.  It  was  a 
sad  home-coming  for  them  after  their  hard  time. 

I  can  only  here  say  that  I  can  never  be  sufficiently  grateful 
to  all  the  members  of  the  Expedition  who  were  with  me  during 
this  bad  season,  for  their  entire  loyalty  and  good-fellowship; 
never  one  moment's  trouble  and  always  cheerful  and  willing. 


THE    ASCENT   OF   EREBUS,    DECEMBER    1912 

By  Raymond  Priestley 

A  PARTY  of  six  left  Cape  Evans  on  December  2,  191 2,  with  the 
main  object  of  surveying  the  old  crater,  and  if  time  permitted 
making  an  ascent  to  the  rim  of  the  present  active  crater.  It  was 
originally  intended  that  in  the  final  climb  Professor  David's  route 
should  be  followed,  but  our  researches  in  the  old  crater  led  to 
the  adoption  of  quite  a  different  way,  and  one  where  a  sledge 
could  be  pulled  to  a  height  of  considerably  over  9500  feet,  at 
least  3000  feet  higher  than  the  Shackleton  Expedition  party 
were  able  to  reach  before  being  obliged  to  abandon  theirs. 

We  left  our  Cape  Royds  camp  (1000  feet  above  sea  level) 
on  December  4.  It  was  not  an  ideal  day  for  starting,  and  for  the 
first  2000  feet  of  the  ascent  we  groped  from  nunatak  to  nunatak 
through  a  thick  cloud,  and  Debenham  was  unable  to  commence 
his  plane  table  survey. 

We  lunched  above  this  cloud  belt,  and  although  it  swelled 
slowly  upwards  we  were,  with  the  exception  of  a  very  few  min- 
utes in  the  early  afternoon,  able  to  keep  ahead  of  it  until  we 
camped  beneath  a  prominent  cone  about  4000  feet  above  sea 
level,  which  is  well  seen  on  the  sky  line  from  Cape  Evans,  and 
which  would  therefore  be  an  important  point  of  Debenham's 
survey,  linking  the  portion  of  Erebus  visible  from  Cape  Evans 
and  Cape  Royds  with  the  country  beyond  the  shoulder,  which 
was  the  last  ridge  visible  from  winter  quarters. 

As  we  were  caught  by  the  fog  in  the  act  of  camping  and  the 
landmarks  below  had  been  blotted  out  all  the  afternoon  by  the 
belt  of  cloud,  we  were  obliged  to  wait  here  until  the  weather 
cleared  and  we  could  fix  the  cone,  and  so  persistent  was  the  bad 
weather  that  it  was  not  until  10  A.M.  of  the  7th  that  we  struck 
Reflection  Camp,  as  we  had  named  it,  and  were  able  to  proceed. 

Our  first  objective,  the  Northern  Nunatak  or  Demetri's  Peak, 
as  we  afterwards  named  it,  was  within  easy  reach  by  lunch  time, 
so  I  decided  to  camp  at  a  large  nunatak  about  a  mile  and  a  half 


ri-.a 


THE    RAMPARTS    OF    MOUNT    EREBUS 


SURVEY    OF   THE    CRATER  241 

from  the  peak  and  take  a  rope  party  to  examine  it.  So  far  all 
the  rocks  we  had  passed  had  been  the  typical  kenyte  so  familiar 
to  us  at  Cape  Royds,  but  we  found  ourselves  now  camped  on 
basalt,  an  allied  but  distinct  rock  which  was  not  seen  by  the  Pro- 
fessor's party,  who  had  kept  close  in  to  the  main  crater  and  had 
not  attempted  any  side  issues  such  as  our  present  divergence. 
After  lunch  I  took  Gran,  Abbott,  and  Dickason,  leaving  Deben- 
ham  with  Hooper  to  help  him  to  continue  his  survey,  and  made 
straight  for  the  peak,  which  we  reached  without  crossing  any  bad 
country,  though  crevasses  were  numerous  above  our  route. 

We  climbed  the  small  triangular  hill  from  bottom  to  top, 
making  its  height  300  feet,  and  from  the  top  we  obtained  a  good 
view  and  a  photograph  of  the  old  crater  and  of  a  strongly 
seracced  glacier  which  loomed  up  as  a  bad  obstacle  in  our  ex- 
amination of  the  district. 

The  peak  proved  more  interesting  geologically  than  was 
expected,  and  we  took  back  a  good  crop  of  specimens  and 
photographs. 

From  here  our  route  to  the  old  crater  itself  proved  steady, 
steep  (for  sledges),  and  uninteresting,  and  we  camped  on  the 
gravel  of  a  small  nunatak  on  the  lower  side  of  the  crater  glacier 
at  5  p.m.  on  the  8th  (8000  feet). 

From  this  point  Debenham  was  able  to  initiate  the  survey 
of  the  crater,  and  the  next  day  all  six  of  us  carried  one  tent  and 
equipment  for  three  men  a  mile  or  two  up  the  side  of  the  glacier 
and  established  a  camp  in  a  gully  nearly  9000  feet  above  sea 
level.  After  making  this  camp  I  took  a  rope  party  of  four  across 
and  collected  from  the  lower  fang  of  the  crater,  while  Deben- 
ham took  Abbott  and  continued  his  plane  table  survey.  What 
I  saw  from  the  crater  side  of  the  glacier  decided  me  to  make  the 
final  climb  from  a  point  about  half  a  mile  beyond  the  Gully 
Camp,  and  so  I  sent  Gran  with  two  of  the  men  back  for  a  supply 
of  food  from  a  depot  we  had  laid  three  or  four  miles  back  and 
almost  on  the  professor's  route. 

After  lunch  I  returned  with  the  other  two,  and  we  struck  the 
single  tent  at  our  lower  crater  camp,  collected  all  spare  gear  and 
depoted  it  and  the  extra  food,  and  on  the  return  of  the  other 
three  we  pulled  the  sledge  with  its  skeleton  equipment  as  far  as 
the  Gully  Camp,  where  we  spent  the  night. 

On  the  morning  of  the  10th  we  again  pulled  out,  and  by 

VOL.   II — 16 


242  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [DecemBER 

11.30  A.M.  we  were  camped  in  the  position  from  which  I  had 
decided  to  make  the  final  ascent.  After  discussion  with  Deben- 
ham,  I  selected  Gran,  Abbott,  and  Hooper  to  accompany  me  to 
the  top,  leaving  Debenham,  who  had  slight  mountain  sickness, 
to  continue  his  survey,  and  Dickason,  who  was  feeling  the  height 
more  than  the  other  two  men,  to  help  him. 

From  here  we  were  taking  a  single  camping  equipment — 
tent  and  poles,  bags,  inside  cooker,  primus,  oil,  and  four  days' 
provisions  on  full  ration,  and  after  this  had  been  apportioned 
each  man  was  permitted  to  take  a  reasonable  amount  of  personal 
gear.  All  hands  dragged  the  packs  on  the  sledge  some  distance 
up  the  first  snow  slope,  but  the  gradient  soon  became  so  steep  that 
we  were  obliged  to  anchor  the  sledge  with  ice  axes  and  assume 
our  packs,  while  Debenham  and  Dickason  tobogganed  back  to 
camp  on  the  sledge. 

By  climbing  about  a  hundred  feet  at  a  time  and  taking  long 
spells  we  were  able  to  make  steady  if  slow  progress  up  the  rock 
ridges,  which  were  here  nearly  continuous  as  far  as  the  rim  of 
the  second  crater.  The  only  difficult  bits  to  negotiate  were  when 
we  were  obliged  to  cross  the  snow-slopes  from  ridge  to  ridge,  and 
these  were  only  dangerous  because,  owing  to  scarcity  of  ice  axes, 
the  four  of  us  were  able  to  have  but  three  between  us,  and  I  was 
never  sure  where  the  fourth  man  would  fetch  up  if  he  slipped. 
This  necessitated  step  cutting  and  slowed  us  up  considerably,  and 
it  was  not  until  three  hours  and  a  half  after  we  had  left  the  sledge 
that  we  reached  the  rim  and  saw  the  second  crater  stretching  out 
in  front  of  us. 

Our  first  care  was  to  select  a  good  site  for  our  camp,  and 
after  that  was  pitched  to  cook  our  evening  meal  and  turn  in. 
The  clouds  prevented  our  getting  a  view  of  the  active  crater  and 
no  photographs  were  possible.  The  only  effect  the  height  had 
on  us  as  yet  was  to  cause  sleeplessness  and  a  slight  shortness  of 
breath,  but  we  were  already  beginning  to  experience  some  dis- 
comfort from  the  low  temperatures,  and  the  whole  time  we  re- 
mained at  or  above  this  elevation  the  mercury  remained  obsti- 
nately below  —  io°  F.,  and  at  one  time  registered  -  300  F. 

The  nth  saw  us  still  shrouded  in  cloud  and,  except  for  a 
short  walk  in  the  immediate  neighbourhood  of  the  camp,  we  got 
nothing  done;  but  Gran  woke  me  at  1  o'clock  in  the  morning  of 
the   1 2th,  to  find  the  weather  so  magnificent  that  I  roused  all 


REMAINS    OF    AN    EXPLOSION    CRATER    ON    EREBUS 

(9,000  feet) 


EREBUS    PARTY,    DECEMBER    I912 
{Left  to  right — top  :  Hooper,  Abbott,  Dickason  ;  bottom  :  Priestley,  Gran) 


i,i2]  THE   ACTIVE   CRATER  243 

hands  at  once  and  we  got  breakfast,  deciding  to  take  time  by  the 
forelock  and  not  risk  a  change  of  weather. 

The  only  drawback  to  the  morning  was  a  low  temperature, 
-15°  F.  to  -  1 8°  F.,  and  a  cold  southerly  wind  which  gave  us 
a  good  deal  of  trouble,  as  the  high  altitude  very  much  decreased 
our  chances  of  resisting  frostbite.  From  the  scenic  point  of  view 
the  valcano  could  not  have  been  better,  for  it  was  very  active, 
and  the  steam  cloud  was  being  carried  steadily  northward  by  the 
breeze.  As  we  approached  the  active  crater  we  secured  photo- 
graph after  photograph,  and  I  also  took  several  looking  back  at 
our  camp  and  the  old  crater  in  the  background,  and  at  Mount 
Terror  and  Mount  Bird.  A  good  description  of  these  two  upper 
craters  has  already  been  given  by  Professor  David,  and  repeti- 
tion would  be  unnecessary  and  useless.  The  principal  impression 
they  have  left  on  our  minds  is  that  of  absolute  bareness  and 
desolation. 

As  our  altitude  increased  we  were  more  and  more  troubled 
with  shortness  of  breath  and  fatigue,  and  were  obliged  to  rest 
every  hundred  yards  or  so;  but  we  reached  the  summit  of  the 
active  cone  within  two  or  three  hours  of  leaving  the  camp,  and 
while  Gran  made  a  cairn  for  the  record  I  had  prepared,  I  en- 
deavoured with  the  help  of  Abbott  and  Hooper  to  light  the  hyp- 
someter;  but  the  breeze  was  too  stiff  and  enfiladed  the  crater 
rim  so  that  no  adequate  shelter  could  be  obtained,  and  after  wast- 
ing half  a  box  of  matches  and  getting  several  frostbitten  fingers 
we  were  obliged  to  desist.  Gran  and  I  then  took  a  series  of 
photographs  on  the  rim  of  the  crater,  but  we  were  unable  to  see 
more  than  a  few  feet  down  because  of  the  steam  and  sulphur 
vapour,  which  caused  us  considerable  inconvenience  even  during 
the  short  time  we  spent  on  the  rim,  for  every  slight  variation 
of  direction  of  the  wind  resulted  in  our  complete  envelopment 
by  the  vapour,  which  was  not  too  good  to  breathe  in. 

After  a  short  while  on  top  Hooper  reported  that  his  feet 
were  frostbitten,  and  I  at  once  ordered  him  back  to  camp,  telling 
off  Abbott  to  accompany  him  and  to  collect  a  rucksack  full  of 
pumice  on  his  way  down. 

Gran  and  I  continued  slowly  down  the  cone,  collecting  fel- 
spars as  we  went,  and  I  had  descended  about  500  feet  when  I 
discovered  to  my  annoyance  that  instead  of  the  record  we  had 
left  a  tin  of  exposed  films  at  the  summit.    Gran  immediately  vol- 


244  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [December 

unteered  to  fetch  this  and  place  the  real  record,  and  as  I  wished 
to  collect  thoroughly  I  continued  slowly  on  my  way  down.  I  had. 
reached  the  second  group  of  fumaroles  and  was  beginning  to 
photograph  them  by  the  time  he  should  have  reached  the  top, 
when  there  was  a  loud  explosion,  and  amongst  the  smoke  I  could 
see  large  blocks  of  pumice  hurled  aloft.  This  eruption  made 
me  extremely  anxious  for  Gran's  fate,  especially  as  he  did  not 
appear  on  the  farther  side  of  the  smoke  cloud  as  soon  as  he  was 
due,  so  in  spite  of  breathing  trouble  I  made  good  speed  up  the 
hill,  and  had  reached  within  fifty  feet  of  the  top  in  record  time, 
and  without  a  halt,  when  he  strolled  out  of  the  steam  cloud  all 
serene  and  looking  none  the  worse  for  his  adventure.  He  had 
had  a  unique  opportunity  of  observing  an  eruption  of  Erebus,  and 
that  the  opportunity  was  not  wasted  can  be  seen  from  his  de- 
scription, which  is  as  follows: 

4  Whilst  making  some  notes  of  the  things  I  had  seen,  I  heard 
a  gurgling  sound  come  from  the  crater,  and  before  I  had  real- 
ised what  was  happening  I  was  enveloped  in  a  choking  vapour. 
The  steam  cloud  had  evidently  been  much  increased  by  the  erup- 
tion, and  in  it  I  could  see  blocks  of  pumiceous  lava,  in  shape  like 
the  halves  of  volcanic  bombs  and  with  bunches  of  long  drawn-out 
hair-like  shreds  of  glass  in  their  interior.  The  snow  around  me 
was  covered  with  rock  dust  and  the  smoke  was  yellow  with 
sulphur  and  disagreeable  in  the  extreme.' 

Gran  was  fortunate  in  not  experiencing  any  worse  effect  of 
the  eruption  than  a  slight  sickness  during  the  next  few  days, 
which  we  both  attributed  to  the  sulphur  vapour.  I  think  of  the 
two  of  us  my  own  experience  was  the  worse  for,  as  he  says  later 
in  his  diary,  *  It  is  no  joke  taking  a  mountain  by  storm,  especially 
with  the  barometer  standing  at  eleven  inches.' 

The  hair-like  lava  I  had  already  noticed  on  the  slopes  of 
the  crater,  and  it  is  doubtless  of  the  type  known  as  Pele's  hair. 

Gran  made  his  escape  from  the  steam  cloud  on  the  western 
side  of  the  mountain,  and  so  was  able  to  get  a  good  view  of  the 
Western  Mountains,  and  believed  he  could  see  a  range  stretching 
back  and  cutting  across  the  plateau  at  about  the  latitude  of  Gran- 
ite Harbour. 

We  then  returned  slowly  to  camp,  collecting  as  we  went,  and 
arrived  in  about  9.30  A.M.,  to  find  that  Hooper's  feet  had  recov- 
ered and  that  Abbott  had  collected  a  fine  lot  of  specimens. 


~TTT~7 


SKETCH  MAP  OF 

MOUNT    EREBUS 

showing  routes  of  ascent, 
from  plane  table  map  Tjy 

F.DEBENHAM. 

Route  1912. 

Approcc.  route  Prof.David.  /.WW. 

Contour  tines  250  ft my  approximate. 
Scale  2.7  miles  to  the  incli.(abirat) 


M9      MURDO         SOUND 


Cape  Evans 


f  Inaccessible  I? 


& 


Stan/dr&'s  Geopf  Estab*,  I 


New  York  :   Dodd,  Mead  &  Company 


VOYAGES   OF   THE    TERRA    NOVA 

By  Commanders  E.  R.  G.  R.  Evans  and 
H.  L.  L.  Pennell 

First  Voyage 

To  connect  the  thread  of  the  story  it  is  as  well  to  run  briefly 
over  what  occurred  before  Campbell  landed  at  Cape  Adare. 

On  January  28,  191 1,  Captain  Scott  and  the  southern  depot 
laying  party  having  left,  the  ship  proceeded  for  King  Edward's 
Land  with  Lieutenant  Campbell  and  his  party  on  board.  Ice 
preventing  her  from  getting  beyond  Cape  Colbeck,  Campbell 
ran  into  the  Bay  of  Whales,  intending  to  land  there;  but  finding 
Captain  Amundsen  had  selected  this  site  and  built  his  hut  here, 
he  proceeded  to  the  opposite  extreme  of  Ross  Sea  to  try  and 
land  on  the  north  coast  of  South  Victoria  Land  as  far  to  the  west 
as  the  ship  could  get.  No  landing  place,  however,  could  be 
found  on  this  coast  at  all  except  at  Cape  Adare,  Robertson  Bay, 
where  there  is  a  moraine  on  which  Borchgrevink  wintered  in 
1898.  There  being  no  alternative  he  decided  to  build  his  hut 
here. 

During  the  18th  and   19th  the  work  of  landing  the  stores 

for  Campbell's  party  was  carried  out  as  rapidly  as  possible,  a 

dead  flat  calm  lasting  the  whole  time.     Heavy  pack 

Feb.  18  and  jce  settinsr  round  the  ship,  prevented  all  communica- 
19, 1911.  ••111         1  1  1        n  1 

Cape  Adare.     tlon  Wltn  tne  snore  between  1  and  2  p.m.  on  the  18th; 

and  at  4  p.m.  on  the  19th  the  ship  was  again  being 

pressed  by  the  ice,  only  more  heavily  than  on  the  previous  day, 

so  that  it  was  necessary  for  her  to  steam  to  her  anchor. 

At  8  P.M.  the  order  was  given  to  weigh  and  stand  off,  and 
the  night  was  spent  by  the  ship  in  doing  magnetic  work,  as  for- 
tunately the  middle  of  Robertson  Bay  was  clear  of  ice. 

At  3.30  A.M.  the  moraine  was  again  approached,  and  the 
watch  that  had  been  landed  to  work  on  shore  were  re-embarked. 


OATES   LAND  247 

Feb.  20,  An  adieu  to  Campbell's  little  party  was  hooted  on 

igu.  the    Syren    and    the    Terra    Nova    steamed    to    the 

N.N.W.,  in  a  calm,  but  with  a  rapidly  falling  barome- 
ter, to  try  and  get  round  the  pack  that  always  extends  north  of 
North  Cape. 

Her  orders  were  to  explore  to  the  west  of  North  Cape  as  far 
as  the  coal  supply  allowed. 

Six  a.m.  found  her  clear  of  the  pack  off  the  entrance  to  the 
bay.  All  hands  set  to  to  clear  up  the  decks,  batten  down  and 
prepare  for  bad  weather,  and  it  was  well  on  in  the  forenoon  be- 
fore they  were  able  to  get  any  rest.  By  noon  a  strong  wind  was 
blowing  from  E.S.E.  and  freshening,  and  the  sea  was  beginning 
to  get  up,  so  fires  were  banked  and  she  was  snugged  down  to 
lower  topsails. 

Blink  appearing  on  the  port  hand,  course  was  altered  to  north 
to  keep  away  from  it,  when  snow  obscured  everything. 

At  noon  on  the  21st  course  was  altered  to  W.,  and  shortly 
after  the  ship  ran  very  close  to  an  iceberg  which  showed  us  that 
Fb  the  range  of  vision,  estimated  at  half  a  mile  for  ice, 

1911,  68°  4.1'  was  considerably  less  than  had  been  thought.  Dur- 
S.,  1680  29'  ing  the  afternoon  she  crossed  Ross's  track,  the  most 
westerly  track  in  this  sea  up  to  date.  At  midnight 
steam  was  again  put  on  the  engines,  the  wind  and  sea  having  died 
rapidly  and  the  weather  cleared.  A  sounding  was  taken  in  1435 
fathoms  and  course  altered  to  the  S.W.  to  close  S.  Victoria  Land 
again. 

Bruce  in  the  afternoon  watch  picked  up  some  snow-capped 
mountains,  and  after  this  more  peaks  and  lower  land  were  quickly 
Feb  22  raised  above  the  horizon,  and  a  large  number  of  ice- 

1911,  690  io'  bergs  appeared  ahead.  The  ship  was  brought  up  by 
S.,  1640  30'  pack  at  9  p.m.  which  stretched  between  her  and  the 
*"  shore  and  parallel  to  the  coast,  as  far  as  could  be 

seen. 

Though  several  attempts  had  been  made,  no  ship  previously 
had  had  the  good  fortune  to  get  in  sight  of  the  'coast  west  of 
North  Cape,  so  the  luck  of  the  Terra  Nova  was  in  this  season. 

This  new  coast-line  discovered  by  Lieutenant  Pennell  has 
been  christened  Oates  Land,  after  Captain  L.  E.  G.  Oates  of  the 
Inniskilling  Dragoons. 

The  land  was  tantalisingly  covered  in  cloud.    Nothing  could 


248  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

be  done  till  the  morning,  and  so  the  night  was  spent  trawling  and 
swinging  for  variation.  A  sounding  gave  178  fathoms.  The 
trawl  was  particularly  interesting  and  made  ample  amends  for 
the  delay.  As  soon  as  it  was  light  enough  to  see,  we  tried  to  close 
the  land  as  the  pack  did  not  look  especially  heavy.  Clouds  still 
hid  all  except  the  lower  land. 

An  hour  and  a  half  showed  the  futility  of  attempting  to  get 
through,  and  at  5  A.M.  the  attempt  was  given  up,  the  ship  being 
then  8000  yards  from  the  end  of  a  glacier  tongue  and  in  134 
fathoms  of  water.  This  tongue  appeared  to  run  down  from 
snow-covered  rounded  hills,  while  behind  it  a  rugged 
iqii,  6g°  29'  range  of  hills  ran  down  to  a  point,  apparently  form- 
S.,  1620  49'  ing  the  eastern  point  of  a  large  bay,  as  away  to  the 
Em  west  could  be  seen  high  cliffs  with  outcroppings  of 

rock,  but  everything  in  that  direction  was  much  obscured  by  mist 
or  haze.  The  ship's  position,  fixed  by  sun  and  moon,  was  690 
437S.,  i63°i7'E. 

Forty-seven  icebergs  could  be  counted  from  this  spot,  all 
being  in  the  pack  and  probably  mostly  aground.  This  trend  of 
the  land  to  the  northward  would  well  account  for  the  hang  of 
the  pack  and  icebergs  north  of  North  Cape. 

At  8  A.M.  the  ship  started  to  skirt  the  pack  to  the  westward, 
noting  what  details  could  be  made  out  of  the  coast,  which  were 
not  many.  The  routine  now  was  for  Rennick  to  sound  every 
forenoon  and  middle  watch,  and  if  in  comparatively  shallow 
water,  as  often  as  time  could  be  spared.  The  sounding-machine 
was  worked  by  hand,  and  on  many  nights  was  a  cold  and  patience- 
trying  job. 

As  she  worked  westward  the  pack  pressed  the  ship  out  from 

the  land,  and  in  the  afternoon  a  light  fog  and  snow 

toil  69°  4'      came  down  again.     In  the  middle  watch  it  blew  a 

S.,  1610 19'      strong  wind  from  the  S.E.,  with  thick  snow,  and  she 

E-  was  hove  to. 

The  snow  stopped  about  8  a.m.,  but  the  day  was  dull  and 

one  could  not  see  far.     Course  was  shaped  S.S.W.   and  by  2 

the  Terra  Nova  was  stopped  by  pack  with  what  ap- 

Feb.  25,  -  .  .    .  rr  /.    r,  ,  .r 

1911,68°  50'  peared  to  be  a  miniature  archipelago  close  to  the 
s.,  159°  11'  southward.  These  turned  out  to  be  icebergs,  prob- 
E-  '        ably  aground,  and  some  of  large  size,  but  when  this 

was  discovered  the  weather  brightened  and  a  cliffy  coast-line  was 


i9ii]  CAUGHT    IN   THE    ICE  249 

seen  to  the  S.W.  Following  the  pack  along  towards  the  land,  it 
was  soon  seen  that  there  was  clear  water  inside  the  pack.  This 
water  extended,  apparently,  up  to  the  land,  and  at  one  place  the 
line  of  pack  was  not  more  than  a  mile  broad.  After  sounding  in 
154  fathoms  the  ship  was  worked  into  the  pack  with  high  hopes 
of  finding  another  place  like  Robertson  Bay,  which  is  often  clear 
of  pack,  though  the  entrance  is  usually  more  or  less  guarded 
by  it. 

At  5  p.m.,  after  an  hour's  struggle,  the  attempt  was  seen  to 
be  hopeless,  the  ship  was  only  a  third  way  through,  and  the  pack 
grew  heavier  as  she  advanced.  A  light  wind  had  sprung  up  and 
this  had  closed  the  pack,  so  that  the  ship  was  caught  and  unable 
to  move  at  all.  This  was  very  disappointing  and  the  position 
was  not  free  from  anxiety  as,  undoubtedly,  there  is  a  fair  tidal 
stream  in  these  waters,  and  grounded  icebergs  do  not  make  pleas- 
ant neighbours  in  such  circumstances. 

As  the  sun  got  low,  the  day  improved,  the  clouds  broke,  and 
in  the  sunshine  we  had  a  good  view  of  the  land,  though  the  upper 
parts  of  it  were  always  shrouded  in  cloud.  The  ship  appeared 
to  be  off  a  point  (or  angle)  in  the  coast,  apparently  forming  the 
western  end  of  a  large  bay  to  the  east  of  us.  The  coast  was  steep 
and  rugged,  half  bare  rocky  points  separated  by  glaciers  being 
the  chief  features.  The  hills  behind  did  not  appear  to  be  very 
high,  but  this  is  only  guess-work,  as  the  higher  land  was  ob- 
scured in  clouds  all  the  time  and  only  occasionally  a  glimpse  could 
be  got  when  the  clouds  partially  lifted  in  one  spot  or  another. 
There  was  no  movement  in  the  ice  in  respect  to  the  ship  till 
5  a.m.,  when  Cheetham  reported  a  general  easing  up,  and  shortly 
after  the  ship  was  able  to  turn  and  work  out  to  the  northward 
without  unusual  difficulty. 

After  taking  bearings  and  making  sketches  from  the  edge  of 
the  pack  we  ran  to  the  northward  and  northwestward,  with  pack 
on  the  port  hand  and  the  coast  beyond  the  pack  till 
1911,  68°  57'  2  P.M.,  when  the  coast  made  a  sharp  bend  to  the  west- 
S.,1580  53'  ward,  though  the  edge  of  the  pack  still  continued  to 
E'  trend  to  the  northward.     While  one  of  the  soundings 

was  being  taken  on  this  day  a  rorqual  fouled  the  sounding  wire 
in  a  most  extraordinary  manner,  and  for  a  short  time  there  was 
quite  an  exciting  and  very  novel  sport  of  playing  whale,  which 
naturally  ended  by  the  wire  parting. 


250  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [Marc* 

This  was  the  last  we  saw  of  the  land,  the  pack  not  being  finally 
cleared  till  in  Lat.  640  23'  S.  Many  times  false  hopes  were 
raised  by  the  ship  running  into  clear  water  and  being  able  to  turn 
west  and  even  south  of  west  towards  where  C.  Hudson  is  marked 
on  the  charts,  but  invariably  it  was  only  a  few  hours  before  she 
would  be  turned  and,  as  a  general  rule,  each  noon  position  was 
east  of  the  previous  one.  On  the  whole,  after  leaving  the  coast, 
the  floes  were  of  a  less  formidable  character  than  those  found  off 
the  north  shore  of  Victoria  Land,  but  the  interspaces  were  filled 
with  slush  or  else  frozen  over  with  new  ice.  This  made  pack 
that  earlier  in  the  season  would  have  been  easily  negotiable  now 
absolutely  impassable.  The  nights  also  were  drawing  out,  and 
after  dark  the  first  appearance  of  pack  had  to  be  the  signal  to 
heave  to  till  daylight,  which  often  meant  till  6  a.m.,  as  the  morn- 
ing twilight  was  found  very  bad  for  picking  a  way  through  the 
pack. 

The  sea  was  now  frozen  over  in  the  sort  of  large  lakes  or 
pools  of  still,  open  water  that  were  found  in  this  sea,  and  though 
this  ice  was  never  more  than  a  few  inches  thick,  it  made  a  con- 
siderable difference  to  our  speed. 

On  March  2,  while  working  through  fairly  loose  pack,  the 
wind  that  had  been  light  westerly  turned  to  E.N.E.,  with  the 
M    ,  immediate  effect  of  closing  the  floes  in,  and  the  ship 

iqii,  6f  35'  was  completely  held  up.  During  that  night  the  wind 
S.,  1600 16'  shifted  again  to  the  southward  and  so  topsails  and 
foresail  were  set.  It  was  merely  waste  of  coal  to  try 
and  steam  through  this  ice,  but  the  steady  pressure  of  the  ship 
under  sail  let  her  gradually,  though  very  slowly,  work  through; 
often  held  up  by  a  floe  for  an  hour  or  more,  in  the  end  she  would 
manage  to  turn  it  and  run  ahead  half  a  ship's  length  or  so.  This 
meant  that  in  her  wake  was  generally  to  be  found  a  small  pool 
of  water  clear  of  ice. 

A  number  of  whales  (Lesser  Rorquals)  were  in  this  pack, 
and  they  soon  discovered  this  clear  water  and  took  advantage 
of  it  to  come  and  blow;  as  there  was  not  room  for  them  to  come 
up  in  the  ordinary  way,  they  had  to  thrust  their  heads  up  ver- 
tically and  blow  in  a  sort  of  standing-on-their-tails  position.  Sev- 
eral times  one  rested  its  head  on  a  floe,  not  twenty  feet  from  the 
ship,  with  its  nostrils  just  on  the  water-line;  raising  itself  a  few 
inches,  it  would  blow  and  then  subside  again  for  a  few  minutes 


I9HJ 


DEEP-SEA    BIRDS  251 


to  its  original  position,  with  its  snout  resting  on  the  floe.  The 
men  amused  themselves  by  pelting  it  with  little  bits  of  coal  and 
other  missiles,  of  which  it  appeared  to  be  entirely  unconscious. 
The  grooves  on  their  throats  were  plainly  seen,  quite  clearly 
enough  to  count  accurately;  and  sometimes  even  their  mous- 
taches could  be  distinctly  made  out,  as  also  the  white  band  on  the 
flipper. 

Fortunately   (or  unfortunately)   the  whale  gun  was  out  of 

action,  and  so  there  was  no  necessity  to  try  and  procure  a  speci- 

men  for  biological  purposes.     Whales  kept  close  to 

1911,  6f  if    the  ship  till  noon  on  the  4th,  when,  the  pack  having 

S.,  1600  4/      eased  up,  steam  was  again  put  on  the  engines  and  she 

was  able  to  make  appreciable  way. 

The  ship  passed  only  some  ten  miles  west  of  Young  Island 
(one  of  the  Balleny  Group),  but  although  it  was  a 
1911,66°  37'    sunny  day  all  the   Balleny  Islands  were  covered  in 
S.,  161°  42'      clouds,  and  no  useful  bearings  could  be  taken. 
*  At  last,  on  March  8,  when  in  640  23'  S.,   1610 

39/  E.,  she  cleared  the  last  of  the  pack,  and  in  half  an  hour  sooty 
albatross  were  round  the  ship,  a  sure  sign  that  no  pack  was  north 
of  her. 

The  next  fortnight  was  a  struggle  for  the  ship  to  keep  to 
windward,  the  wind  obstinately  holding  to  the  north  side  of 
west  and  generally  blowing  hard.  Although  so  light,  she  was 
much  stiffer  than  expected. 

To  the  seaman  of  the  present  day  used  to  iron  ships  it  is 
a  never-failing  source  of  surprise  and  delight  to  see  a  wooden 
ship  in  a  heavy  sea.  How  nicely  she  rides  the  waves,  like  a  living 
being,  instead  of  behaving  like  a  half-submerged  rock. 

The  albatross  and  other  deep-sea  birds  were  a  great  pleas- 
ure; while  south  of  Lat.  6o°  the  pretty  Hour-glass  dolphin  (first 
noticed  by  Dr.  Wilson  in  the  Discovery)  was  often  round  the 
ship. 

On  the  22nd,  when  ninety  miles  south  of  the  Macquarie 
Islands,  the  long  hoped  for  fair  wind  came  at  last  and  held  till 
March  22  we  mac*e  Stewart  Island.  On  the  23rd  steam  was 
1911, 56*9'      again  raised. 

S-,  1590 15'  The  pumps  had  been  a  nuisance  throughout,  and 

during  a  gale  on  the  24th  the  trouble  came  to  a  head: 

the  ship  was  heeling  between  40  and  45  degrees  and  jumping 


252  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [April 

about  considerably,  and  only  a  little  water  could  be  got  through 
the  engine-room  pumps.  The  hand  pump  had  been  kept  going  all 
night,  but  during  the  morning  also  choked,  and  as  soon  as  there 
was  a  little  water  in  the  well,  it  lifted  a  plate  in  the  engine-room 
during  one  of  the  ship's  bad  heels  and  let  all  the  ashes  and  coal 
down  into  the  well.  Both  bunker  doors  had  to  be  shut  and  could 
not  be  opened  with  safety;  engines  were  stopped  and  steam  kept 
for  the  bilge  pump,  whose  suction  was  with  great  difficulty  kept 
partially  free  by  Mr.  Williams.  He  kept  a  perforated  enamel 
jug  on  the  end  of  the  suction,  and  stopping  the  pump  every  two 
or  three  minutes  as  the  suction  choked,  removed  and  cleared  the 
jug,  replaced  it  and  then  restarted  the  pump;  this  process  having 
to  be  kept  up  the  whole  time  the  hand  pumps  were  being  seen  to. 
To  accomplish  his  object  Williams  had  to  lie  flat  on  the  boiler- 
room  plates,  and  when  the  ship  listed  to  starboard,  stretch  right 
down  with  his  head  below  the  plates  and  clear  as  much  coal  away 
from  round  the  suction  as  possible.  This  often  meant  that  the 
water  surged  back  before  he  could  get  his  head  out,  and  there 
can  be  few  nastier  liquids  to  be  ducked  in  than  that  very  dirty 
bilge-water. 

Meanwhile  for  the  hand  pumps  Davies  h?d  to  take  off  the 
bottom  lengths  of  the  suction  pipes,  lift  them,  and  clear  them 
from  below.  To  do  this  the  flange  rivets  had  to  be  bored 
out,  and  it  took  eight  hours'  incessant  work  to  finish  the 
job. 

During  the  re-fitting  at  Lyttelton  pumps  and  everything  con- 
nected with  them  were  thoroughly  overhauled  in  all  respects  and 
never  gave  serious  trouble  again. 

Paterson  Inlet  was  made  on  March  28  and  Lyttelton  on 
April  1. 

Throughout  all  her  cruise  the  scientific  side  of  the  ship's  work 
was  undertaken  as  follows :  Lillie  had  all  the  biological  work  and 
Rennick  was  solely  in  charge  of  the  soundings,  and  it  can  be 
safely  said  that  neither  of  them  missed  a  single  opportunity  that 
offered; 

Meteorological  Log:    Drake; 
Zoological  Log:    Bruce; 
Magnetic  Log  and  Current  Log:   Pennell; 
while  the  officer  of  the  watch,  at  the  time,  kept  a  general  lookout 
for  anything  of  interest  that  might  occur. 


i9ii]  THE    WINTER    CRUISE  253 

Lyttelton,  The  ship  lay  at  Lyttelton  for  three  months,  under- 

Apnl  1-  going  a  general  and  thorough  refit.      Rennick  was 

employed  the  whole  time  in  plotting  as  much  of  the 
surveying  work  carried  out  in  the  south,  as  could  be 
done  in  the  time,  and  in  preparing  the  charts  for  the  forthcoming 
winter's  cruise;   while  Bruce  looked  after  the  refit. 

Here  we  should  like  to  take  the  opportunity  of  thanking 
Mr.  J.  J.  Kinsey  for  the  great  trouble  he  always  took  to  help 
the  Expedition  in  every  way  that  lay  in  his  power. 


Winter  Cruise 

The  ship  again  left  Lyttelton  on  July  10  for  a  three  months' 
cruise,  to  carry  out  surveying  work  round  the  Three 
jo,  ign.    '     Kings'  Islands  and  between  this  group  and  the  ex- 
Winter  treme  north  of  New  Zealand. 

Cruise.  Hereabouts  rather  troubled  waters  prevail,  as  the 

swell  from  the  Tasman  Sea  to  the  west  meeting  that  from  the 
Pacific  to  the  east  often  causes  a  confused  swell  even  in  calm 
weather.  The  routine  was  to  sound  all  day  and  have  Lillie's 
plankton  nets  over  all  night,  while  opportunities  for  trawling 
were  always  taken  as  they  occurred,  Lillie  being  ready  any  hour 
of  the  day  or  night.  On  the  whole  a  very  good  biological  col- 
lection as  obtained. 

Occasionally  a  visit  was  paid  to  Mangonui  on  the  east  coast 
to  take  in  fresh  provisions,  but,  as  a  rule,  the  ship  was  hove  to 
for  the  night. 

Lillie  gave  a  series  of  popular  lectures  on  evolution,  which 
aroused  the  greatest  interest  fore  and  aft  and  did  a  great  deal 
to  break  the  monotony  of  the  time. 

Rennick  and  Mr.  Williams  very  ingeniously  adapted  a  motor 
(most  generously  lent  by  Mr.  Kinsey  from  a  motor-boat)  to 
work  the  Lucas  sounding  machine,  which  quite  trebled  the  ship's 
sounding  efficiency. 

Sounding  work  does  not,  as  a  rule,  provide  exciting  incidents, 
the  day  when  it  is  undertaken  coming  under  one  of  two  headings 
— suitable  for  work  or  unsuitable.  On  unsuitable  days,  if  the 
wind  was  easterly,  nothing  could  be  done  except  to  heave  to  and 
drift;  if  westerly,  there  was  good  anchorage  inside  North  Cape 
(the  extreme  north-east  point  of  New  Zealand),  and  the  whole 


254  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [Oct**** 

company  were  on  these  occasions  very  thankful  for  the  quiet 
days  in  the  ship,  in  comparison  with  the  tossing  about  experienced 
in  easterly  gales.  Mr.  Williams  was  also  able  to  take  advantage 
of  these  days  to  clean  boiler  tubes. 

The  time  away  was  strictly  limited  to  the  period  covered  by 
the  insurance  of  the  ship,  and  so,  on  September  22,  she  had  to 
leave  for  Lyttelton.  On  the  way  down  she  called  in 
Bay  of  Islands,  at  Russel^  Bay  of  Islands,  to  take  in  fresh  provisions 
toii.  2  '  and  pick  up  her  mail.  Three  days  were  spent  here 
waiting  for  the  mail  and  were  much  appreciated  by 
everyone,  as  it  is  an  exceedingly  pretty  and,  historically,  very 
interesting  spot.  Rennick  without  delay  set  about  cleaning  and 
painting  the  ship  so  that  she  might  be  presentable  for  Lyttelton, 
though  frequent  showers  of  rain  did  not  help  him. 

Lillie  and  a  companion  walked  over  the  peninsula  to  the  tiny 
little  Bay  of  Wangamumu,  where  there  is  a  small  whaling  sta- 
tion belonging  to  Messrs.  Jaggers  and  Cook.  After  a  delightful 
walk  through  the  bush,  which  took  some  seven  or  eight  hours  in- 
stead of  three  or  four  as  expected,  they  were  lucky  enough  to 
find  Mr.  Cook  there  himself,  for  he  had  arrived  from  the  South- 
ern Ocean  only  a  few  hours  previously,  and  was  preparing  to 
commence  whaling  round  this  station. 

Lillie  was  able  to  make  arrangements  to  stay  with  them  for 
a  month. 

On  Thursday,  the  28th,  the  Terra  Nova  weighed  and  pro- 
ceeded south,  calling  at  Wangamumu  on  the  way,  where  Lillie 
was  landed  with  all  his  paraphernalia  for  collecting  and  pre- 
serving specimens. 

The  ship  arrived  off  Kaikoura  at  daybreak  on  the  8th  and, 

being  now  close  to  home  and  with  three  days'  grace,  was  able 

to  put  in  two  days'  sounding  on  the  hundred  fathom 

at  oura         ymQ  anj  gQ  ^     ^jj  rather  serious  blank  on  the 

Oa.  <y,  ign.  r 

charts.  1  he  coast  scenery  here,  on  a  nne  day,  is  mag- 
nificent, as  the  seaward  Kaikoura  mountains  run  close  to  the  coast 
and  there  are  very  many  striking  snow-capped  peaks  in  the  range. 

On  October  10  the  Terra  Nova  was  once  more  berthed 
alongside  the  wharf  at  Lyttelton.  It  is  only  fitting  here  to 
acknowledge  the  real  hospitality  shown  the  Expedition  by  New 
Zealand.  From  the  Prime  Minister  downwards  all  were  anxious 
to  help,  and  the  extent  of  this  help  received  both  from  individuals 


i9n]  SHIPMENT    OF    MULES  255 

and  Government  departments  can  only  be  fully  realised  by  the 
ship's  party,  who  found  all  difficulties  smoothed  away  for  them 
as  soon  as  they  arose.  Dr.  John  Guthrie,  M.D.,  of  Lyttelton 
took  on  the  duty  of  honorary  doctor  and  Mr.  P.  Strain  of  Christ- 
church  volunteered  as  honorary  dentist.  The  services  of  both 
gentlemen  were  frequently  and  gratefully  invoked. 

The  ship  was  rather  over  two  months  at  Lyttelton,  and  the 

time  was  just  sufficient.     Rennick  was  able  to  finish  the  chart  of 

the  Three  Kings  and  the  ship's  soundings  by  working 

Lyttelton,  hard  at  it,  although  the  time  was  very  short  for  such 
Oct.  10-Dec.  1 

15,1911-  WOrk- 

The  mules,  given  by  the  Indian  Government,  had 

arrived  some  weeks  before  the  return  of  the  ship  and  were  en- 
joying themselves  in  the  fields  on  Quail  Island,  while  the  four- 
teen Siberian  dogs  from  Vladivostock  arrived  during  October. 
Everything  that  care  and  foresight  could  do  for  the  mules  had 
been  done  before  they  left  India,  and  the  Expedition  owes  a  deep 
debt  of  gratitude  to  Lieutenant  George  Pulleyn  of  the  Indian 
army,  in  whose  care  they  were,  for  the  trouble  taken  over  them. 
For  some  time  before  leaving  India  they  had  been  exercised  in 
rocking-boxes  to  develop  the  muscles  especially  brought  into 
use  by  the  motion  of  a  ship ;  and  their  equipment,  which  was  sent 
with  them,  had  been  thought  out  with  the  greatest  care.  As  we 
had  only  seven  mules,  the  stables  were  built  over  the  fore-hatch 
on  the  foremost  side  of  the  ice-house,  so  that  they  all  were  in 
the  open  air. 

The  dogs  travelled  unattended  from  Japan,  and  the  officers 
of  the  different  ships  in  which  the  mules  and  the  dogs  travelled 
took  every  possible  pains  to  keep  them  in  good  health,  with  the 
most  happy  results  in  both  cases. 

Mr.  James  Dennistoun  joined  the  expedition  here  to  take 
charge  of  the  mules  on  the  way  south. 

Lillie  had  a  very  fairly  successful  month  at  Wangamumu,  as 
a  good  many  whales  were  caught,  all  however,  of  one  species — 
the  Humpback.  On  his  return  from  there  he  went  off  to  Mount 
Potts  in  the  South  Island,  collecting  fossil  plants,  being  for- 
tunate in  obtaining  some  specimens  of  the  early  Mesozoic  flora. 

The  programme  for  the  cruise  as  far  as  could  be  foreseen 
and  according  to  the  outline  given  in  Captain  Scott's  sailing 
orders  to  the  ship  was : 


256  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION  [December 

i.  Pick  up  Campbell  and  party  about  January  I   at  Cape 
Adare. 

2.  Re-land  them  in  the  vicinity  of  Wood  Bay. 

3.  Relieve  the  geological  party  about  January  15  at  Granite 

Harbour. 

4.  Land  mules,  dogs,  stores,  &c,  at  Cape  Evans. 

5.  Lay  out  various  depots  according  to  the  orders  to  be  re- 

ceived at  the  Hut,  in  readiness  for  the  next  season's 
work. 

6.  Consistently  with  carrying  out  the  above,  to  make  bio- 

logical collections,  sound,  and  carry  out  other  scientific 
work  to  as  large  an  extent  as  possible. 

Second  Voyage 

At  daybreak  on  December  15  the  ship  slipped  and  proceeded 
with  mules,  dogs,  and  all  relief  stores  on  board.  This  year  was 
the  year  of  transport  workers'  strikes  at  home,  and 
Dec.  15,  if-  was  on]y  the  extreme  energy  and  determination  of 

ingTLyttelton.  our  manager,  Mr.  Wyatt,  and  the  great  consideration 
shown  by  the  shipping  companies  that  enabled  the 
stores  to  be  shipped  out  in  time.  Until  Christmas  Day  we  had  a 
high  barometer  and  fine  weather,  with  fairly  light  but  continuous 
southerly  winds.  This  made  our  progress  slow,  but  the  fine 
weather  more  than  compensated  for  that. 

Rennick  sounded  twice  a  day  while  on  the  New  Zealand  con- 
tinental shelf  and  once  a  day  afterwards,  except  for  two  and  a 
half  days  round  about  Christmas,  when  the  weather  prevented 
this  work  being  done. 

The  motor  now  worked  without  a  hitch;  without  it  the  ne- 
cessity of  crossing  the  Southern  Sea  quickly,  so  as  to  save  the  ani- 
mals, would  have  allowed  very  few  soundings  to  be  taken.  The 
smooth  sea  also  allowed  the  mules  to  be  moved  in  their  stalls, 
so  that  the  stables  could  be  properly  cleaned  out  and  thoroughly 
disinfected. 

The  Sunday  before  Christmas,  just  as  we  were  going  to  lunch, 
Nigger,  the  cat,  fell  overboard.  He  had  been  baiting  the  dogs 
on  the  poop,  got  uncomfortably  close  to  one  and, 
Dec.  24,  ^  jumping  to  avoid  the  dog,  went  overboard.  Fortu- 
3pf S  °So  nately  it  was  an  exceptionally  calm  day;  the  sea 
39'  W.  boat  was  lowered,  and  Nigger,  who  swam  pluckily, 


i9ii]  MULES    EXERCISED    ON    DECK  257 

was  picked  up  and  the  ship  on  her  course  again  twelve  minutes 
after  the  accident.  He  was  quite  benumbed  with  the  cold,  but 
was  taken  down  to  the  engine-room  and  well  dried,  given  a 
little  brandy  to  drink,  and  by  the  evening  was  all  right  again. 

The  first  berg  was  passed  on  Christmas  Day  in  6 1  °  3 1'  S.,  and 
the  first  belt  of  pack  on  the  26th  in  63 °  59/  S.  It  was  not,  how- 
D      6  ever,  till  the   following  evening  that  the   real  pack 

iqii,  6f  was  met,  and  in  the  dog  watches  of  the  28th  it  began 
3**  s->  J73°  to  get  heavy,  eventually  holding  the  ship  up  at  1  A.M. 
23'  w'  that  night. 

After  once  getting  in  the  pack  until  they  were  landed,  the 
mules  were  exercised  at  least  twice,  generally  three  times  a  week. 
Dec  20  and  They  were  walked  round  and  round  the  main  hatch 
so,  iqii,  66°  and  nearly  all  of  them  used  to  take  the  opportunity 
46'  S.,  1770  to  roll,  which  they  greatly  appreciated.  With  the 
4  numerous  ring  bolts,  combing  of  the  main  hatch  and 

other  obstructions,  there  was  a  certain  amount  of  risk;  fortu- 
nately there  was  no  accident  and  the  benefit  they  derived  from 
being  moved  about  justified  the  risk  being  taken. 

The  deck  was  always  well  covered  with  ashes,  which  were 
kept  for  the  purpose  instead  of  being  thrown  overboard  when 
sent  up  from  the  boiler-room.  Two  or  three  of  the  mules  were 
inclined  to  jump  about  a  bit;  Lai  Khan,  in  particular,  enjoying 
his  outings  a  little  too  much,  but  Bruce  always  took  charge  of 
him  and  managed  to  keep  him  well  under  control. 

Every  day  after  leaving  New  Zealand  the  dogs  were  given 
a  run  round  the  upper  deck,  and  whenever  the  ship  was  stopped 
in  the  ice  they  were  exercised  on  a  floe,  which  afforded  plenty  of 
excitement  to  the  men  as  well  as  to  the  dogs. 

Being  held  up  in  the  pack  always  gives  a  good  opportunity 
for  work  of  different  sorts  to  be  done.  Lillie  has  his  plankton 
nets  over,  trying  different  depths;  Rennick  always  sounds;  and, 
if  the  sun  comes  out,  observations  for  variation  are  taken  with 
the  landing  compass  on  a  floe  outside  the  range  of  disturbance 
of  the  ship's  iron ;  and,  if  a  floe  with  ice  that  has  not  been  splashed 
with  salt  water  is  near  enough,  the  ship  is  watered,  as  there  is 
no  knowing  when  the  next  opportunity  may  occur  to  obtain  fresh 
water. 

During  the  30th  the  floes  were  visibly  breaking  up,  and  in 
the  morning  watch  of  the  31st  steam  was  again  put  on  the  en- 
gines and  the  ship  able  to  make  slow  but  steady  progress. 

VOL.    II — 17 


25  8  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [January 

In  the  early  hours  of  the  new  year  the  pack  was  left,  and  no 
more  pack  was  met  till  the  ship  got  to  within  five  or  six  miles 

of  Cape  Adare  at  9  a.m.  on  the  3rd. 
{00'  J; Igi2'  Here  very  heavy  pack  was  found  and  Robertson 

I78°4??'  k.  Bay  was  Ml  °f  i^  Dut  by  waiting  for  the  chance  she 
managed  to  get  within  a  mile  of  the  moraine  on  which 
the  hut  is  built  by  11.30;  all  inside  this  was  heavy  pack  swiftly 
moving  with  the  tidal  stream.  Nothing  could  be  done,  and  with 
the  satisfaction  of  seeing  people  moving  about  near 
1Q12.  Off  '  the  nut)  we  nad  t0  naul  0^  to  the  centre  of  the  en- 
Robertson  trance,  where  there  was  now  a  space  of  clear  water. 
Bay'  While  waiting,  Lillie  got  a  satisfactory  trawl  in  fifty 

fathoms — the  first  of  the  season. 

At  4  p.m.  the  water  on  the  north  side  of  the  moraine  cleared 
sufficiently  to  allow  of  an  attempt  at  landing,  and  after  an  hour's 
pushing  through  the  pack,  she  anchored  close  in,  in  seven  fathoms. 

Rennick  and  Bruce  immediately  went  on  shore  with  the 
cutter  and  whaler,  and  in  spite  of  a  nasty  swell,  which  was  break- 
ing on  the  beach,  were  able  to  embark  some  of  the  stores. 

In  an  hour  and  a  half,  however,  the  boats  had  to  return,  as 
the  pack  was  setting  towards  the  ship,  and  she  had  to  weigh 
at  once;  it  was  not  till  1  p.m.  the  next  day  that  the  pack  gave 
signs  of  easing  up  again,  and  the  ship  took  till  4.30  to  work  her 
way  through  and  anchor  again  in  the  same  position.  The  swell 
had  now  died  down,  and  in  two  and  a  half  hours  Campbell  and 
all  his  party,  their  collections,  and  all  necessary  stores  were  on 
board;   just  in  time,  for  the  pack  was  again  setting  on  the  ship. 

Robertson  Bay  is  not  a  nice  place  from  the  seaman's  point 
of  view.  The  tidal  streams  are  strong,  the  pack  ice  heavy,  there 
are  very  many  grounded  bergs  about,  and  gales  are  frequent  and 
fierce,  while  the  uneven  bottom  suggests  the  likelihood  of  un- 
known pinnacled  rocks.  It  was  with  great  satisfaction,  there- 
fore, that  we  left  the  bay  with  Campbell's  party  on  board  in  ex- 
cellent health  and  spirits. 

More  pack  was  found  lying  off  the  coast  of  South  Victoria 

Land  and  kept  the  ship  well  off  shore  till  about  forty-five  miles 

E.S.E.   of  the   extremity  of  the   Drygalski   Barrier, 

when  it  became  sufficiently  loose  to  let  her  turn  in 

Jf'/s  s*12'    towards  the  Drygalski  and  work  through  it.     With 

1680  3/  E.       hopes   alternately   raised   and  lowered  as  the   pack 


i9i2]  CAUGHT    IN    THE    ICE  259 

eased  up  or  became  heavier,  the  ship  at  last  got  on  the  north  side 
of  the  Barrier  and  into  clear  water;  and  during  the  first  watch 
of  the  8th  was  secured  alongside  the  sea  ice  at  the  entrance  to 
what  is  now  called  Arrival  Bay,  about  six  miles  north  of  Evans 
Coves. 

The  gear  and  a  month's  depot  for  Campbell's  party  were 
immediately  disembarked,  and  with  hands  from  the  ship  to  haul 
a  depot  sledge,  he  was  left  on  a  moraine  about  one  and  a  quarter 
miles  from  the  ship. 

The  ship  slipped  immediately  her  party  returned,  and  meet- 
ing a  good  deal  of  fog  and  snow  had  some  difficulty 
1912,76°  3'  m  working  through  the  pack  on  the  way  out,  being 
S->i65°55'  eventually  held  up  during  the  forenoon  of  the  10th 
E'  and  kept  there  for  thirty-six  hours;    but  in  the  end 

she  arrived  off  Beaufort  Island  during  the  afternoon  of  the  12th. 

The  prospect  was  not  encouraging,  as  there  was  nothing 
but  heavy  pack  in  the  direction  of  Granite  Harbour  and  across 
the  whole  entrance  to  McMurdo  Sound.  It  was,  how- 
1912,  76°  42'  ever,  a  glorious  day,  and  the  opportunity  was  taken  to 
S.,  167°  i2r  swing  ship  for  magnetic  constants,  take  observations 
for  variation  on  the  ice,  sound,  and  try  to  collect 
plankton.  In  the  Antarctic  seas  the  water  is  often  so  full  of 
diatoms  that  the  fine  meshes  of  the  plankton  nets  choke  as  soon 
as  they  are  put  over.  This,  by  stopping  the  passage  of  water 
through  the  net,  prevents  it  catching  anything  and  so  renders 
useless  many  opportunities  for  collecting  that  would  otherwise 
be  favourable. 

Till  February  4  nothing  could  be  done.  On  January  13  fast 
ice  was  found  to  extend  as  far  north  as  the  southern  end  of 
f  Bird  Peninsula;  and,  when  it  was  possible  to  work 
41912.  in  through  the  pack  towards  Granite  Harbour,  fast  ice 
or  near  was  found  on  the  23  rd  to  extend  thirty  miles  from 

McMurdo        the  head  of  this  inlet. 

Sound.  rj^i  J 1  *  1  ,. 

1  hese  three  weeks  were  one  long  succession  or 
being  caught  in  the  pack  and  struggling  to  get  out  again.  When- 
ever there  appeared  to  be  any  change,. the  ship  would  steam  over 
towards  Granite  Harbour  or  Cape  Evans  to  look;  for  often  it 
appeared  as  if  the  ice  in  the  strait  was  really  breaking  up,  but 
every  time  in  reality  it  was  found  that  only  comparatively  little 
had  gone  out. 


260  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

The  time,  however,  was  not  wasted :  whenever  in  a  workable 
depth,  with  steam  up,  Lillie  had  his  trawl  out  and  so  got.  six  or 
seven  trawls.  Rennick  got  a  number  of  soundings,  though  of 
necessity  not  in  any  particular  line,  and  there  were  several  oppor- 
tunities for  swinging  ship  and  observing  variation  on  fast  ice, 
while  an  interesting  series  of  Giant  Petrels  was  obtained,  rang- 
ing from  white  to  the  comparatively  dark  varieties. 

Mather,  who  had  taken  great  trouble  in  New  Zealand  to 
perfect  his  taxidermy,  skinned  all  the  ship's  specimens. 

At  last,  on  February  4,  the  ship  was  secured  alongside  fast 
ice  off  Cape  Barne.  Atkinson  came  off  with  a  dog  team  and  re- 
ported all  well,  and  was  shortly  followed  by  Meares  and  Simp- 
son. They  informed  us  that  the  ice  was  bad  between  the  ship 
and  shore,  and  consequently  did  not  stay  long,  but  took  the  mails 
with  them  when  they  left. 

During  the  next  two  days  two  miles  of  ice  went  out  in  a  gale, 

and  in  the  first  watch  of  the  6th  the  ship  was  at  last 

Feb.  6-14,        secured  alongside  fast  ice,  with  safe  ice  between  her 

Cape  Evans.       and  CaPe  Evans. 

The  dogs  went  ashore  at  once,  the  mules  were 
hoisted  out  early  the  next  morning,  and  soon  were  safely  ashore, 
after  being  on  board  fifty-four  days.  It  says  much  for  Dennis- 
toun's  care  of  them  that  they  landed  in  such  good  condition. 

Sledging  the  stores  on  shore  was  commenced  at  once ;  but  it 
was  two  and  three-quarter  miles  to  Cape  Evans  (i.e.  five  and  a 
half  miles  on  the  round  trip),  so  that  the  work  was  necessarily 
slow. 

The  unloading  continued  steadily  till  the  14th,  with  a  break 
in  the  middle  when  a  gale  took  another  mile  of  ice  out  and  so 
made  work  much  quicker;  but  on  the  14th  the  ice  started  breaking 
up  and  yet  did  not  go  out;  nothing  could  be  done,  and  as  after 
a  day  no  change  took  place  the  ship  crossed  over  the  Sound  to 
Butter  Point  to  see  conditions  in  that  direction.  There  were  still 
nineteen  tons  of  stores,  including  some  coal,  to  be  landed,  but  all 
the  essentials  were  ashore. 

At  Butter  Point  a  note  from  Taylor  (in  charge  of  the  geo- 
logical party)  was  found,  saying  that  his  party  had  camped  there 
and  gone  on  the  previous  day.  Following  the  coast 
south,  this  party  was  observed  on  the  Blue  Glacier, 
McMurdf12'  and  tney  were  soon  on  board,  all  well.  It  was  for- 
Sound.  tunate  that  Taylor  had  realised  early  the  impossibility 


o    I 

>    .2 

H       "^ 


i9i2]  A    STORM  261 

of  the  ship  reaching  Granite  Harbour  and  so  had  beaten  a  retreat 
south  over  the  piedmont.  His  specimens  he  had  been  compelled 
to  leave  in  a  depot  at  Granite  Harbour. 

Shortly  after  they  were  picked  up  it  came  on  to  snow  and 
blow.  Owing  to  the  weather  it  was  impossible  to  land  this  party 
Feb  at  Cape  Evans,  so  the  ship  turned  north  to  pick  up 

1912,  750  Campbell's  team.  Course  was  shaped  direct  for  the 
2/  S.,  166°  extreme  of  the  Drygalski  Barrier,  and  the  ship  ran, 
49     '  with  considerable  pack  to  the  east  of  her  and  loose 

pack  in  shore,  until  heavy  ice  ahead  forced  her  to  turn  back  on 
her  course  some  twelve  miles  and  then  work  through  the  eastern 
belt  of  pack. 

The  following  extract  is  from  the  ship's  journal: 

1  Following  the  edge  of  the  pack  north,  it  was  seen  to  be  very 
heavy  and  the  blink  gave  no  sign  of  open  water  inside  it  until 
the  ship  was  east  by  north  thirty-five  miles  from  the  end  of  the 
Drygalski,  when  there  was  a  belt  of  pack  some  two  miles 
broad  and  clear  water  inside,  at  any  rate  for  some  distance: 
this  belt  was  entered  at  2.30  p.m.,  and  it  shows  the  heaviness 
of  the  ice  that  she  was  not  clear  till  past  9  o'clock  (a  speed  of 
a  third  of  a  knot),  although  it  was  comparatively  loose-looking 
pack. 

1  The  wind  was  rising  as  she  worked  through  this  strip  of  pack, 
and  soon  after  it  came  on  to  snow  heavily.  Nothing  could  be 
done  but  to  remain  under  easy  steam,  to  avoid  the  floes,  if  pos- 
sible, and  look  out  for  bergs.  Before  midnight  it  was  blowing 
storm  force  and  objects  were  visible  at  only  a  few  hundred 
yards.' 

The  storm  continued  for  two  days,  the  latter  half  without 
snow,  when  Mount  Melbourne  showed  up  in  great  beauty. 

The  open  water  the  ship  was  in  was  about  six  miles  broad, 
and  though  across  the  pack  another  lead  (or  possibly  open 
water)  could  be  seen,  five  miles  or  so  distant,  yet  it  was  absolutely 
out  of  her  reach. 

The  wind  was  steady  in  direction  from  the  south-west,  and 
the  whole  pack  and  ship  drifted  slowly  but  surely  north  until  it 
became  imperative  to  regain  the  open  sea  to  avoid  being  caught 
in  the  cul-de-sac  of  Lady  Newnes  Bay. 

Fortunately  the  retreat  was  open  and  the  wind  fair  for  tak- 
ing it,  and  so  on  the  21st  the  ship  had  regained  her  freedom  of 


2  62  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [February 

Feb.  21,  action,  but  was  no  nearer  relieving  Campbell.     That 

TgI2,/o  °,  evening  the  storm  eased  down  and  course  was  again 
E.  shaped  for  the  Drygalski  Barrier,  with  the  hope  that 

the  ice  which  had  previously  barred  her  way  might 
have  drifted  past  the  end  of  the  Barrier.  The  pack  (now  on  the 
starboard  hand)  was  followed  south  as  closely  as  possible,  though 
snow  often  shut  in  everything  to  a  ship's  length  and  compelled 
her  to  stop  till  it  was  clear  enough  again  to  see  where  she  was 
going.  Gradually  she  was  able  to  alter  more  to  the  west  and 
north  of  west,  until  in  the  middle  watch  (23rd)  she  had  rounded 
the  southern  end  of  the  pack,  some  20  miles  south  of  the  Dry- 
galski Barrier,  and  was  steering  north  through  light  pancake  ice 
with,  of  course,  the  heavy  pack  again  to  the  eastward  of  her. 
The  pancake  ice  gradually  became  heavier,  but  she  was  able  to 
make  two  or  three  knots  at  sixty  revolutions. 

Tempted  on  by  what  appeared  to  be  water  sky  ahead,  she 
rather  unexpectedly  came  to  a  dead  stop  about  4  A.M.  and  could 
F  ,  not  even  go  astern  in  her  wake,  as  the  pack  east  of 

1912,  7s°  43'  her  was  pressing  in  towards  the  coast  and  so  consoli- 
S.,  1640  20'  dating  the  pancake  ice  she  was  in.  At  the  same  time 
the  weather  cleared  and  showed  the  extremity  of  the 
Drygalski  Barrier  to  be  fifteen  miles  due  north.  The  water  sky 
proved  to  be  a  myth. 

After  six  hours  the  pressure  eased  and  the  Terra  Nova  was 
able  to  turn,  taking,  however,  four  hours'  struggle  to  do  so,  and 
it  took  another  twenty-six  hours  to  escape  from  the  ice  which, 
on  the  day  before,  she  had  taken  three  hours  to  pass  through. 
The  alternative  of  leaving  the  ship  in  the  ice  and  letting  her  drift 
with  it  past  the  Barrier  was  too  dangerous  to  be  more  than 
thought  of  and  cast  aside,  owing  to  the  probable  severe  pressure 
that  would  be  encountered  while  passing  the  Barrier  itself. 

The  ship  immediately  proceeded  to  Cape  Evans  in  order  to 
report  and  to  embark  those  going  home,  as  it  was  probable  that 
she  would  have  to  spend  the  remainder  of  her  time  trying  to 
relieve  Campbell. 

As  far  as  Cape  Bird  the  ship  passed  through  sea  covered  with 
pancake  ice,  and  Ponting  was  able  to  get  some  very  interesting 
photos  of  it  in  different  stages  of  growth.  Fortunately  this  ice 
only  reduced  her  speed  by  about  two  knots. 

After  passing  Cape  Bird  a  strong  southerly  wind  sprang  up, 


i9i2]  ATTEMPT    TO    RELIEVE    CAMPBELL      263 

so  that  great  difficulty  was  experienced  in  making  Cape  Evans; 
but  finally  she  anchored  close  in  at  2  p.m.  on  the  25th,  all  the  fast 
ice  having  gone  out  since  she  was  last  here.    At  1 1  P.M.  the  gale 

lulled  for  a  few  minutes  and  a  boat  was  sent  ashore. 
Feb.  25,  Simpson  at  once  came  off  with  the  news  that  Lieu- 

Mnms.    ap€     tenant  Evans  was  at  Hut  Point  and  seriously  ill,  and 

should  be  taken  off  as  soon  as  possible. 
The  gale  came  on  again  at  once,  and  it  was  not  till  the  first 
watch  on  the  28th  that  the  ship  could  secure  alongside  the  fast 

ice  about  y2  mile  north  of  Hut  Point  and  Atkinson 
r*b 'f8'n  h^    anc^  ^is  party  were  able  to  bring  Evans  on  board. 

The  opportunity  was  taken  to  land  two  sledge  loads 
of  stores  that  would  be  useful  at  Discovery  hut. 

The  ship  at  once  proceeded  to  Cape  Evans,  and  by  every- 
one on  shore  and  aboard  lending  a  willing  hand  the  remainder 
of  the  stores  (about  nineteen  tons)  was  landed  in  the  boats  be- 
tween 2  a.m.  and  7.30  a.m.,  in  a  perfect  calm  and  beautiful 
weather. 

As  soon  as  the  last  boat  came  off,  the  ship  left  for  Terra 
Nova  Bay  again.  It  was  essential  that  Lieutenant  Evans  should 
r ,  have  a  doctor  with  him  for  a  few  days  more  and  so 

tea.  20  .  J 

1912,  ?f  7'  Atkinson  had  to  go  in  her,  though  it  was  quite  likely 
S.,  1660  25'      that  she  might  not  be  able  to  re-enter  the  Sound. 

Conditions  off  Terra  Nova  Bay  had  not  improved, 
and  the  ship  ran  up  and  down  outside  the  heavier  pack  trying 
it  in  places  wherever  a  sign  of  weakness  showed;  but  with  always 

the  same  result,  that  after  entering  two  or  three  miles 
MarcJ} lI \3nd  through  pack  which  gradually  grew  heavier  she  would 
Nova  BayJ     ^e  brought  up.     Once,  indeed,  she  managed  to  work 

through  to  a  position  north-east  seven  miles  from  the 
end  of  the  Drygalski  Barrier,  but  even  here  she  was  35  miles 
from  her  destination,  and  this  was  the  last  flicker  of  reasonable 
hope. 

The  following  extract  is  from  the  ship's  log: 
'  All  day  on  outskirts  of  ice  filling  Terra  Nova  Bay  and  ex- 
tending fifteen  to  twenty  miles  eastward  from  the  extremity  of 
the  Drygalski  Barrier.  On  the  outskirts  thin  pancake  and  small, 
but  very  heavy,  bay  ice  floes ;  the  heavy  floes  becoming  more  nu- 
merous and  the  new  ice  heavier  the  farther  the  pack  is  entered, 
till  heavy  pack  with  interspaces  all  filled  with  snow  slush  forms 


264  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [March 

an  impenetrable  barrier;  in  places  this  year's  pancake,  consoli- 
dated and  up  to  one  foot  thick,  in  thick  slush,  forms  equally  im- 
penetrable barrier  owing  to  its  viscous  nature/ 

In  the  forenoon  of  the  3rd  the  ship  was  again  headed  for 
Cape  Evans.  From  several  miles  north  of  Beaufort  Island  to 
M     ,  nearly  Cape  Royds  the  ship  was  passing  through  pan- 

1912,  760  2'  cake  ice,  ref rozen  into  large  solid  sheets  of  very  vary- 
S.,  i6f  26"  ing  heaviness  but  often  sufficient  to  reduce  her  speed 
fifty  per  cent.  The  wait  at  Cape  Evans  was  very 
short;  she  was  only  delayed  an  hour  embarking  those  members 
going  home  who  had  not  been  able  to  get  on  board  before,  to- 
gether with  Keohane,  and  then  proceeded  to  Hut  Point,  where 
the  ice  had  now  broken  away  to  within  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  the 
hut. 

Atkinson  and  Keohane  were  landed  and  a  few  stores  taken 
to  the  hut.    The  ship  then  ran  for  the  Glacier  Tongue 
March  4,         t0  complete  with  water,   and  shortly  after   10  p.m. 
Hut  Point.        (tne  4tn)  proceeded  again  for  Terra  Nova  Bay. 

Although  only  twenty  hours  had  elapsed  between 
the  time  she  passed  Cape  Royds,  going  south,  and  repassed  it, 
going  north,  the  ice  had  materially  thickened,  and  between  Cape 
Bird  and  Beaufort  Island  she  forced  through  with  considerable 
difficulty.  The  condition  off  Terra  Nova  Bay  had,  if  anything, 
grown  worse,  and  this  time  the  ship  was  held  up  when  20  miles 
E.N.E.  of  the  Barrier. 

Finally,  on  March  7,  taking  into  consideration  the  nature  and 
-      ,  extent  of  the  pack  and  the  time  of  the  year,  the  con- 

March  7,  .  r.  .  iii«  11 

1912,  75°  5'  elusion  was  reluctantly  come  to  that  the  snip  could 
S.,1680  43'  not  reach  Arrival  Bay  that  season,  and  so  she  turned 
K  north. 

The  next  day  a  sooty  albatross  was  around  the  ship — a  most 

welcome  sight,  proving  the  absence  of  pack  to  north 
March  8,  yf  0f  ner .  anc|  from  now  0n  large  numbers  of  deep  sea 
H'  E.  birds  were  always  round  the  ship. 

On  the  15th  and  16th  the  Terra  Nova  passed  up 
the  north-east  side  of  the  Balleny  Islands,  closer  than  any  other 
ship  had  been  able  to  get,  except  Balleny  himself;   but  either  it 

was  foggy  or  else  it  snowed  so  persistently,  that  noth- 
M arch  16,  jng  was  seen  0f  them  except  on  the  16th,  when  the 
44/2£.  1640  f°S  suddenly  rolled  away  for  two  hours  and,  through 
48'  E.  a  rift  in  the  clouds,  a  glimpse  of  Buckle  Island  was 


i9i2]  BACK    TO    NEW    ZEALAND  265 

obtained — part  of  the  side  of  a  snow-capped  mountain  with  the 
sun  on  it,  a  rarely  beautiful  sight,  appearing  to  be  quite  detached 
from  anything  to  do  with  the  earth  herself.  Before  this  one  of 
the  beautiful  little  snowy  petrels  had  appeared,  telling  of  ice  in 
the  vicinity,  so  the  course  was  altered  more  to  the  northward  and, 
when  the  fog  lifted,  icebergs  and  smaller  bits  of  ice  were  seen 
on  the  port  hand.  It  is  seldom  these  little  birds  are  found  away 
from  the  close  vicinity  of  ice. 

Fires  were  put  out  on  the  18th,  a  good  offing  having  been 
made,  the  position  being  640  S.,  1600  12'  E. 

Between  the  21st  and  the  25th  it  blew  hard,  the  climax  being 
reached  on  Sunday  night  (the  24th),  when  a  severe  storm  was 
.,    ,  raging,  the  most  severe  encountered  by  the  ship  dur- 

March24,  •  i  i      i  •      •  T      •  i       r    i      •    i 

1912, 550  ing  her  whole  commission.  It  is  a  wonderful  sight 
Si'  S.,  1650  to  see  a  comparatively  small  ship  in  a  storm,  particu- 
49 ' E'  larly  at  night;    the  marvellous  way  she  rides  over 

waves  that  look  as  if  they  must  break  on  board,  together  with  the 
dense  darkness  in  the  heavy  squalls,  relieved  only  by  the  white 
crests  of  the  waves  as  they  break,  is  a  sight  that  makes  up  for  a 
considerable  amount  of  discomfort. 

The  gale  was  followed  by  two  days'  calm,  when  Ponting  was 
able  to  cinematograph  the  birds  feeding  close  under  the  ship's 

March  26  stera* 

and  27,  520  When  off  the  coast  of  New  Zealand  a  school  of 

20'  s.,  i6f  sperm  whales  was  seen  and  followed  for  some  time 
33  E'  with  the  hopes  of  getting  a  photograph.     The  ani- 

mals, however,  were  too  shy  for  the  ship  to  approach  within  rea- 
sonable photographic  range. 

At  daybreak  on  April  1  the  ship  entered  Akaroa  harbour  to 

despatch  the  telegrams  with  the  season's  news.     Here 

J"   *'  we  learned  of  Amundsen's  success  in  his  undertaking. 

On  the  3rd  she  was  berthed  alongside  the  wharf 

in  Lyttelton  again,  and,  needless  to  say,  received  with  true  New 

Zealand  hospitality. 

The  season  had  in  many  ways  been  a  hard  one  for  the  engine- 
room  department,  but  they  never  failed  the  ship  in  any  of  the 
difficulties  in  which  she  found  herself,  and,  although  conditions 
were  often  disheartening,  the  hands  kept  as  willing  and  cheerful 
as  if  everything  was  going  well. 

Lieutenant  Evans  and  Drake  went  home  on  expedition  busi- 


266  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [December 

ness,  the  members  of  the  shore  party  who  had  returned  dispersed 
to  their  respective  duties  in  civil  life,  and  the  men  who  had  joined 
in  New  Zealand  signed  off  temporarily  for  the  winter. 

Refitting  and  laying  up  the  ship  was  hurried  on  as  rapidly  as 
possible  and,  by  the  help  of  the  New  Zealand  Government,  ar- 
rangements were  made  for  the  ship's  party  to  survey  Admiralty 
Bay  in  the  Sounds. 

The  party  were  boarded  at  an  accommodation  house  near 
French  Pass  and  worked  from  motor  launches,  these  latter  being 
fitted  with  the  ship's  Lucas  sounding  machines. 

The  party  consisted  of  thirteen,  including  officers,  and  three 
hands  remained  in  the  ship  at  Lyttelton  as  ship-keepers. 

This  work  lasted  from  June  10  to  October  15,  when  it  was 
necessary  to  return  to  Lyttelton  to  prepare  for  the  coming  relief 
voyage. 

On  the  whole  for  that  part  of  New  Zealand  the  weather  this 
winter  was  unfavourable,  but,  in  spite  of  this,  a  satisfactory 
amount  of  work  was  carried  out. 

On  August  17  we  had  the  great  misfortune  to  lose  Brissenden 
by  drowning.  He  was  buried  on  the  hillside  overlooking  the 
bay,  and  a  marble  cross  erected  to  his  memory.  Robert  Brissen- 
den was  a  first-class  man,  careful  and  reliable,  besides  being  a 
very  good  messmate,  and  his  loss  was  very  much  felt  by  all. 

The  Third  Voyage 

The  ship  left  Lyttelton  at  5  a.m.  on  December  14,  191 2.    A 

crowd  of  friends  had  collected  to  bid  us  farewell  and 

Dec.  14,  send  last  messages   to   our  companions   in  Victoria 

1012.     Lyttel-    T         ,  °  r 

ton.  Land- 

At  7  P.M.  that  evening  we  discovered  a  wretched 
man  stowed  away  in  the  lifeboat.  On  being  questioned  the  stow- 
away said  he  was  a  rabbiter  and  anxious  to  make  a  voyage  in  the 
Terra  Nova:  he  appeared  to  be  about  thirty-five  years  of  age 
and  not  very  intelligent.  As  there  was  no  object  in  taking  this 
man  south  we  shaped  course  for  the  nearest  port,  Akaroa,  in 
order  to  land  him.  Fortunately,  the  Norwegian  barque  Triton 
was  sighted  at  midnight,  and  her  courteous  captain  relieved  us 
of  our  stowaway,  promising  to  land  him  in  Dunedin. 

The  programme  for  the  third  southward  voyage  included 


HEAVY   PACK   IN   WHICH  THE   SHIP  WAS   HELD   UP  WHILST  ENDEAVOURING 
TO   RESCUE    THE    NORTHERN    PARTY 


i9i2]  THE    RAT    PEST  267 

the  running  of  a  line  of  soundings  from  Banks  Peninsula  to  a 
point  in  Lat.  6o°  S.,  Long.  1700  W.  Thence  the  ship  was  to 
proceed  due  south  until  the  pack  was  reached,  sounding  twice 
daily.  After  entering  the  pack  she  was  to  continue  to  force  her 
way  southward,  keeping  approximately  on  the  meridian  of 
1650  W.,  to  sound  over  the  less  known  portions  of  the  Ross  Sea, 
and  to  determine  the  nature  and  extent  of  the  pack  ice  in  this  un- 
explored region. 

The  earlier  southern  voyages  had  mostly  been  made  in  more 
westerly  longitudes. 

In  conjunction  with  the  ambitious  deep  sea  sounding  pro- 
gramme Lillie  was  to  make  a  number  of  quantitative  plankton 
stations,  and  obtain  trawls  whenever  the  occasion  was  suitable. 
We  also  hoped  to  add  materially  to  our  magnetic  observations 
for  Variation,  Dip  and  Total  Force. 

The  programme  was  fairly  well  adhered  to,  and  thanks  to 
Rennick's  expert  handling  of  the  Lucas  machine  we  obtained 
several  soundings  of  about  3000  fathoms,  when  less  ardent  hy- 
drographers  would  have  surrendered  to  the  bad  weather. 

On  December  17  the  Antipodes  Islands  were  passed,  the  ship 
labouring  in  the  heavy  sea  and  occasionally  rolling 
1912,49°  her  bulwarks  under;  it  was  not  considered  advisable 
12'  S.,  178°  to  attempt  a  landing.  These  islands  are  visited  twice 
14  E'  <■  a  year  by  a  government  steamer,  and  have  been  ex- 
amined pretty  thoroughly,  although  rather  sketchily  surveyed. 

On  this  voyage  the  ship  was  infested  with  rats,  but  Cheetham, 
our  boatswain,  who  has  crossed  the  Antarctic  circle  fourteen 
times,  showed  himself  an  adept  at  rat-catching  and  soon  freed 
the  ship  from  the  pest.  He  used  to  throw  the  rats  over  the  side, 
and  the  albatrosses  and  mollymawks  would  swoop  down  and 
devour  the  vermin  in  an  incredibly  short  time.  We  had  all  kinds 
of  rat-traps  in  use,  and  even  used  mouse-traps  to  catch  the  young. 

On  December  26,  in  Lat.  63 °  S.,  we  passed  the  first  iceberg 
of  the  voyage,  an  old  disrupted  berg,  and  as  we  ad- 
De?'o6,<fo  vanced  southward  all  kinds  of  icebergs  were  to  be 
36'  W,  seen.     The  ice-log  shows  a  greater  number  and  va- 

riety of  bergs  on  this  than  on  the  two  preceding 
voyages. 

The  great  belt  of  Antarctic  pack  ice  was  not  reached  until 
December  29,  when  we  had  attained  the  69th  parallel. 


268  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [December 

Dec.  29,      ^  On  comparison  with  the  records  of  earlier  voy- 

c?Jjjj0o>Jf/  ages  it  w^l  be  seen  that  the  northern  limit  of  the  pack 
W.  this  year  lay  two  degrees  farther  south  than  found 

on  voyages  made  in  more  western  longitudes. 

The  only  other  expedition  that  has  explored  this  part  of  the 
Ross  Sea  was  that  under  Sir  James  Ross,  who  found  a  line  of 
compact  hummocky  ice  in  the  same  position  in  1842;  this  con- 
firmation throws  some  light  on  the  trend  of  the  pack  in  this 
quadrant. 

We  had  expected  to  meet  with  pack  ice  on  crossing  the  Ant- 
arctic circle,  and  our  expectations  not  being  realised,  the  ship's 
company  looked  forward  to  an  almost  ice  free  voyage  to  the 
Ross  Sea. 

Our  hopes  were  frustrated.  The  day  after  entering  the 
pack  we  encountered  heavy  bay  ice,  which  retarded  us  to  such 
an  extent  that  we  could  scarcely  make  more  than  one  mile 
an  hour  on  our  course.  We  had  a  tremendous  struggle  this 
season  to  get  into  the  Ross  Sea  at  all,  and  not  until  we  had 
fought  our  way  for  over  400  miles  did  we  really  get  through  the 
pack. 

The  weather  conditions  this  season  were  all  that  we  could 
wish  for,  and  we  had  plenty  of  time  at  our  disposal  to  carry 
out  our  scientific  programme.  When  our  way  was  barred  by  tem- 
porary congestion  of  the  pack  Pennell,  Rennick,  and  Lillie  would 
all  get  ahead  with  magnetic,  deep-sea  sounding,  and  biological 
work,  mostly  under  favourable  conditions. 

Occasionally  the  sea  was  so  discoloured  by  diatoms  that  we 
might  have  been  steaming  in  the  Thames  estuary,  and  then  again 
the  discoloured  area  would  be  succeeded  by  belts  of  beautiful 
blue  water  wherein  one  could  see  crab-eater  seals  diving  under 
the  ship. 

Quite  the  most  fascinating  sight  in  the  pack  ice  was  the  ex- 
hibition of  swimming  by  two  crab-eaters  in  the  open  water  leads 
on  New  Year's  Day.  They  followed  the  ship  and  disported 
themselves  like  dolphins;  when  we  were  forced  to  stop  owing 
to  the  closeness  of  the  pack  the  two  seals  rubbed  themselves 
along  the  side  of  the  ship. 

We  were  disappointed  at  seeing  no  Ross  seals  this  year,  for 
we  have  secured  no  specimens  of  this  animal  at  all. 

By  January  5  we  had  worked  through   168  miles  of  pack, 


I9I2J 


PENGUINS  269 


Jan.  5, 1913,    averaging  only   24  miles   a   day,   and  burning  over 
7Il6f'g'jV      seven  tons  of  coal  for  each  daily  run. 

Now  we  were  confronted  by  small  belts  of  ice 
composed  of  floes  15  to  20  feet  thick  and  100  feet 
in  diameter.  This  ice  was  so  hard  that  the  ship  could  not  break 
it.  Whenever  we  collided  with  a  floe  the  Terra  Nova  shook  fore 
and  aft,  the  officer  in  the  crow's  nest  experiencing  the  most  vio- 
lent concussions. 

On  this  day  a  penguin  chased  us  for  over  an  hour,  crying  out 
ludicrously  whenever  one  of  us  imitated  its  call.  The  little 
creature  became  quite  exhausted,  as  we  were  steaming  through 
lighter  ice  at  the  time  and  it  had  to  swim  steadily  after  us.  The 
poor  bird  was  unable  to  reach  the  ship,  as  the  '  kick '  of  the  pro- 
peller swirled  it  away  whenever  it  caught  us  up.  As  often  as  this 
happened  the  penguin  would  struggle  on  to  a  floe  and  reel  about 
like  a  drunken  man,  until  finally  it  lay  still,  thoroughly  defeated. 
We  were  completely  beset  with  ice  on  January  6  and  7,  and 
,     .       the  officers  spent  their  time  working  for  Lillie,  ob- 

Jan.  o  and  .    .  .       t  L  .  111 

7, 1913,  710      taming  plankton  and  water-bottle  samples  at  many 
40'  s.,  1660      different  depths. 

47  w'  Lillie  put  out  his  twenty-four  mesh  net  at  iooo 

metres,  and  obtained  a  lot  of  specimens,  including  a  fine  jelly-fish. 

On  January  8,  the  ice  opening  up,  we  proceeded  slowly  on 
our  way.  We  passed  close  alongside  a  low  hummocky  iceberg 
which  had  three  Emperor  penguins  on  it.  They  must 
Jan.  8  191 3,  have  been  there  some  weeks,  as  the  surface  of  the 
i6f  4'  w.  Derg  was  much  soiled  and  the  snow  trodden  about 
over  a  great  area.  The  iceberg  was  too  high  for  the 
birds  to  have  regained  had  they  once  left  it.  Two  of  the  Em- 
perors were  very  thin;  the  third,  an  enormous  bird,  was 
moulting  and  one  could  not  make  out  what  sort  of  condition  he 
was  in. 

Until  January  14  progress  was  painfully  slow,  but  on  this 
day  the  ship  worked  through  into  looser  ice.  The  pack  was 
eventually  cleared  on  January  16  in  Lat.  740  50'  S.,  Long. 
1770  IS' E. 

The  night  of  January  17-18  was  very  still  and  a  belt  of 
stratus  cloud  settled  down,  forming  a  thick  fog;  the  ship  never- 
theless was  worked  through  small  ice  belts  and  she  rounded 
Cape  Bird  on  the  morning  of  the  18th.    About  breakfast  time 


270  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [January 

the  sun  dispersed  the  mist  and  shone  brightly.  The  now  famil- 
iar features  of  McMurdo  Strait  were  clearly  outlined  to  the 
southward,  and  our  stout  little  ship  steamed  at  full  speed  past 
Cape  Royds  towards  our  winter  quarters. 

We  had  spent  the  last  twenty-four  hours  in  '  squaring  up  ' 
and  preparing  our -comfortable,  if  somewhat  limited,  accommo- 
dation for  the  reception  of  our  comrades  at  Cape  Evans.  The 
mails  were  all  sorted  and  each  member's  letters  done  up  in 
pillow-slips  with  his  name  boldly  printed  thereon.  We  had  only 
one  piece  of  bad  news,  the  death  of  poor  Brissenden,  for  all  the 
wives  and  relations  were  well,  and  eagerly  looking  forward  to 
the  return  of  the  expedition.  Every  telescope  and  binocular  in 
the  ship  was  levelled  on  the  hut  as  Cape  Evans  opened  out  from 
behind  the  Cape  Barne  Glacier.  The  bay  was  free  of  ice  and  one 
or  two  figures  were  discernible  outside  the  hut. 

The  ship  rapidly  closed  the  beach,  and  by  the  sudden  lively 
movements  of  those  ashore  we  knew  that  the  Terra  Nova  had 
been  perceived. 

As  we  stopped  engines  a  crowd  collected  before  the  hut  and 
we  could  count  nineteen  men — it  was  an  exciting  moment. 

The  shore  party  gave  three  hearty  cheers,  to  which  the  ship's 
company  replied.  The  Commanding  Officer,  espying  Campbell, 
shouted  through  a  megaphone,  'Are  you  all  well,  Campbell?' 
At  this  our  friends  on  shore  became  speechless,  and  after  a 
very  marked  hush,  which  quite  damped  our  spirits,  Campbell 
replied :  '  The  Southern  Party  reached  the  Pole  on  January  1 8 
last  year,  but  were  all  lost  on  the  return  journey — we  have  their 
records.' 

The  anchor  was  dropped;  Campbell  and  Atkinson  immedi- 
ately came  off  and  told  us  in  detail  how  misfortune  after  mis- 
fortune had  befallen  our  gallant  leader  and  his  four  brave  com- 
rades. We  listened  sadly  to  the  story,  and  our  feelings  were  too 
deep  to  be  described.  We  had  actually  prepared  the  cabins  for 
the  reception  of  our  lost  companions,  and  it  was  with  infinite  sad- 
ness that  the  beds  were  unmade,  the  flags  hauled  down  from  our 
mastheads,  and  those  undelivered  letters  sealed  up  for  return 
to  the  wives  and  mothers  who  had  given  up  so  much  in  order 
that  their  men  might  achieve. 

But  however  great  our  sorrow  we  had  the  consolation  of 
pride  in  the  magnificent  spirit  shown  by  the  Polar  Party.     The 


IN 


(*S*°% 


-  Gates  InsDrcs  -  „,, 


MEMORIAL    CROSS    ERECTED    AT    OBSERVATION    HILL    TO    THE    SOUTHERN    PARTY 


i9i3]  THE    SOUTHERN    PARTY  271 

manner  in  which  these  men  died  is  in  itself  an  eloquent  descrip- 
tion of  their  characters  as  we  knew  them.  The  absolute  gener- 
osity of  Captain  Scott  himself  runs  through  his  dying  appeal  to 
the  nation  and  those  letters  of  his  with  no  word  of  blame  or 
reflection  on  others  for  the  disaster,  though  he  could  not  know 
that  scurvy  had  smitten  the  last  supporting  party,  and  that 
those  who  would  have  come  were  fettered  by  illness  and  the 
weather  conditions  that  finally  arrested  the  advance  of  the  dog 
teams. 

It  was  characteristic  also  that  he  did  not  forget  the  future 
of  his  Expedition,  but  left  instructions  and  letters  to  the  end 
that  the  scientific  results  should  be  fitly  published. 

The  two  devoted  men  who  died  side  by  side  with  Captain 
Scott  were  fine  British  types.  Wilson  was  a  wonderful  fellow, 
whose  magnificent  judgment  helped  us  all  to  smooth  over  the 
little  troubles  which  were  bound  to  arise  from  time  to  time,  and 
who  (it  has  been  said  before  and  let  it  be  said  again)  by  his  own 
example  and  the  influence  of  his  personality  was  mainly  respon- 
sible for  the  fact  that  there  never  was  a  quarrel  or  an  angry 
word  in  the  Expedition. 

Bowers  possessed  an  individuality  that  attracted  his  com- 
panions enormously.  He  was,  besides  being  a  very  quick,  clever 
worker,  a  humourist  of  the  most  pleasing  type.  He  bore  hard- 
ship splendidly  and  stood  the  cold  probably  better  than  anyone 
in  the  Expedition. 

The  conspicuous  bravery  of  Oates  was  typical  of  the  man. 
'  The  Soldier  '  was  really  loved  by  the  men.  He  had  a  dry  wit 
that  always  left  him  uppermost  in  those  exciting  arguments  that 
did  so  much  to  cheer  us  during  the  winter  season.  Patrick  Keo- 
hane,  a  splendid  Irish  seaman,  remarked  to  us  as  the  details  of 
the  story  were  unfolded:  *  Captain  Oates  did  just  what  we  all 
expected  of  him,  sir;  he  was  a  fine  man  that,  sir;  not  much  talk 
about  him,  but  chock  full  of  grit.' 

The  fifth  man  of  the  Southern  Party  was  a  British  blue- 
jacket of  the  finest  type,  who  had  made  himself  invaluable. 
Edgar  Evans  was  the  sledge-master,  and  to  him  we  owed  the 
splendid  fitting  of  our  travelling  equipment.  He  left  a  fine  rec- 
ord of  service,  and  his  example  will  do  a  great  deal  for  the 
younger  seamen  of  the  Royal  Navy. 

The   Terra  Nova  remained  at  anchor  off  Cape  Evans  for 


272  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [January 

thirty  hours,  and  those  on  board  did  their  best  to  help  the  Cape 
Evans  party  to  settle  down  for  the  homeward  voyage. 

We  heard  that  the  shore  party  had  that  day  (Jan.  18)  com- 
menced the  work  of  preparation  for  a  third  winter;  they  were 
delighted  to  see  us.  A  typical  extract  from  the  Diary  of  a  mem- 
ber may  be  quoted: 

'  Jan.  1 8. 

Terra  Nova  in  sight 
Hurrah !   Hurrah ! 

Great  Joy 

Hurrah ! 


We  are  relieved,  and  God  be  thanked  for  that  Teddy  *  is  on 
board  the  Terra  Nova.    Everything  all  right  there.' 

Immediately  greetings  had  been  exchanged  and  the  situation 
thoroughly  grasped,  all  hands  packed  and  transported  the  speci- 
mens, collections,  and  equipment  to  the  ship.  We  worked  all 
night,  and  in  twenty-four  hours  had  removed  our  effects  to  the 
Terra  Nova,  and  closed  the  hut  after  clearing  it  up  and  making 
a  list  of  provisions  and  equipment. 

We  have  left  at  Cape  Evans  an  outfit  and  stores  that  would 
see  a  dozen  resourceful  men  through  one  summer  and  winter  at 
least. 

On  Sunday,  January  19,  at  5.20  P.M.,  the  Expedition  finally 
left  Cape  Evans  and  proceeded  in  the  Terra  Nova  to  Cape 
Royds,  where  a  depot  of  specimens  left  by  Priestley's  party  on 
the  Erebus  journey  was  embarked. 

We  then  steamed  up  the  Sound  towards  Hut  Point  until 
brought  up  by  the  fast  ice  which  still  stretched  out  for  nearly  ten 
miles  from  the  southern  shores  of  McMurdo  Sound. 

Early  on  January  20  Atkinson  set  out  with  a  party  of  seven 
to  erect  a  cross  in  memory  of  our  lost  companions.  It  had  been 
constructed  by  Davies  of  Jarrah,  an  Australian  wood. 

This  cross,  9  feet  in  height,  now  stands  on  the  summit  of 
Observation  Hill,  overlooking  the  Great  Ice  Barrier  and  in  full 
view  of  the  Discovery  winter  quarters. 

*  '  Teddy '  refers  to  Lieut.  Evans,  who  was  not  expected  to  live  after  his  bad  attack 
of  scurvy. 


i9i3]  THE    MEMORIAL    CROSS  273 

IN 

MEMORIAM 

Capt.  R.  F.  Scott,  R.N. 

Dr.  E.  A.  Wilson,  Capt.  L.  E.  G.  Oates,  Ins.  Drgs.,  Lt.  H.  R.  Bowers,  R.  I.  M. 

Petty  Officer  E.  Evans,  R.N. 

WHO    DIED    ON    THEIR 

RETURN    FROM    THE 

POLE.       MARCH 

1912 

TO    STRIVE,    TO    SEEK, 

TO    FIND, 

AND    NOT    TO 

YIELD 

The  line  chosen  from  Tennyson's  '  Ulysses  '  was  suggested 
by  Cherry-Garrard.  Atkinson's  sledge  team  consisted  of  those 
who  had  taken  part  in  the  search  for  Captain  Scott. 

They  took  two  days  to  convey  the  heavy  wooden  cross  to 
the  top  of  Observation  Hill  and  erect  it.  It  was  well  secured, 
and  will  remain  in  position  for  an  indefinite  time,  as  there  is  no 
dampness  likely  to  cause  rot  in  this  high  latitude. 

During  Atkinson's  absence  the  ship's  officers  were  employed 
surveying  and  carrying  out  magnetic  work;  the  engineers  took 
this  opportunity  of  letting  fires  out  and  cleaning  the  boiler.  At- 
kinson returned  on  the  night  of  January  21,  having  put  Hut 
Point  in  order  and  closed  the  old  Discovery  hut,  which,  like  our 
own  winter  quarters,  we  have  left  well  stocked  with  provisions 
and  what  equipment  we  could  spare. 

During  the  night  of  the  19th  a  large  iceberg  swept  into 
McMurdo  Sound  and  was  carried  by  the  current  directly  for  us. 
Having  no  steam  we  had  to  set  sail  and  stand  away  to  the  north- 
ward from  the  sea  ice  to  which  we  were  made  fast.  We  had 
some  excitement,  as  the  wind  was  very  light;  the  sails  were  just 
full  enough  to  give  us  steerage  way,  and  the  great  tabular  ice- 
berg drifted  close  across  our  stern. 

The  ship  now  proceeded  towards  Granite  Harbour.  Steam 
was  ready  by  5  A.M.  on  the  morning  of  the  22nd,  and  encounter- 
ing detached  belts  of  ice  we  furled  sail  and  worked  close  to  the 
coast  of  Victoria  Land. 

At  2  p.m.  the  Terra  Nova  rounded  Cape  Roberts  and  secured 
to  the  fast  ice  off  Granite  Harbour. 

Gran  in  charge  of  a  party  of  six  men  went  in  to  bring  off  a 
geological  depot  left  by  Taylor  and  Debenham.  It  was  a  hard 
journey,  17  miles  there  and  back.     A  big  open  lead  had  to  be 

vol.  11 — 18 


274  SCOTT'S     LAST     EXPEDITION  [January 

crossed  en  route,  and  Gran's  men  negotiated  this  by  converting 
their  sledge  into  a  '  kayak,'  using  a  canvas  cover  which  made 
quite  a  good  boat  out  of  the  sledge.  On  their  way  home  to  the 
ship  they  had  the  fortune  to  get  on  to  a  loose  ice  floe  with  their 
two  sledges.  Ferrying  in  this  fashion  much  time  was  saved,  and 
the  party  returned  hungry  and  tired  but  successful  at  3  A.M.  on 
January  23. 

During  the  absence  of  this  party  some  surveying  work  was 
accomplished,  and  the  astronomical  observations  taken  by  the 
navigating  officers  in  conjunction  linked  on  the  work  of  Griffith 
Taylor  and  Debenham  to  the  main  survey.  Off  shore  soundings 
were  obtained  by  Rennick  with  a  view  to  throwing  light  on  the 
neighbouring  glacier  movements.  Pennell  carried  out  magnetic 
observations,  Lillie  trawled  with  the  Agassiz  and  obtained  a  fine 
haul,  which  included  enormous  sponges.  In  short  the  usual  bee- 
hive industry  in  the  scientific  work  was  maintained. 

At  3.30  A.M.  the  sledge  gear  was  brought  on  board  by  Gran's 
party;  they  had  secured  all  Taylor's  and  Debenham's  beautiful 
geological  collections,  consisting  largely  of  fossils  and  coral. 
These  specimens  had  been  left  here  a  whole  year  ago. 

This  accomplished,  we  hauled  in  our  ice  anchors  and  pro- 
ceeded under  steam  as  requisite  for  working  through  the  pack 
which  barred  our  way  to  the  Drygalski  Barrier. 

At  11.30  a.m.  the  ice  became  so  heavy  that  we  were  forced 
to  turn  round  and  return  towards  Granite  Harbour. 

All  day  we  worked  to  clear  out  of  the  pack  and  made  only 
fair  progress,  the  floes  being  so  big  that  our  weight  would  not 
move  them.  The  outlook  was  brighter  at  midnight,  when  we 
were  doing  5  knots  to  the  northeastward,  the  ice-fields  being  less 
compressed.  The  punching  and  butting  through  continued  with 
varying  success  till  9  p.m.  on  January  24,  when  the  commander 
concluded  that  it  was  a  waste  of  coal  and  unfair  to  the  ship  to 
proceed.    We  stopped,  therefore,  and  banked  fires. 

After  a  delay  of  seven  or  eight  hours  Bruce  reported  the  ice 
to  be  opening  tremendously,  and  we  accordingly  proceeded  on 
January  25,  as  soon  as  steam  was  ready.  Very  gradually  the 
old  ship  worked  towards  Terra  Nova  Bay.  Shortly  after  noon 
we  won  through  into  a  very  big  open  lead  and  could  make  five 
knots  on  our  course.  We  stopped  to  sound  at  8  A.M.  and  noon, 
the   soundings   showing   437,    625,   and   515    fathoms.     These 


165° 


C.WcLshbn 


\70° 


TRACKS     OF 

s.y.'terra  nova" 

JANUARY     TO    MARCH 
912 


165E. 


*Lcruilrrv. 


New  York  :  Dodd,  Mead  &  Company. 


i9i3l  HARDSHIP    REVEALED  275 

soundings  show  a  '  deep  '  which  I  believe  Professor  David  rather 
suspected.    They  were  really  taken  for  his  benefit. 

By  3  A.M.  on  January  25  we  had  worked  the  ship  through 
the  ice  near  Campbell's  winter  quarters  and  secured  to  the  sea 
ice  which  extended  a  quarter  of  a  mile  out  from  the  piedmont. 
This  was  particularly  solid  and  slippery,  being  quite  free  from 
snow.  Although  so  close  to  the  shore  we  found  the  depth  198 
fathoms. 

We  sent  a  party  away  under  Priestley  to  pick  up  the  depot 
of  geological  specimens ;  the  remainder  of  the  Expedition  visited 
the  igloo  where  Campbell  and  his  party  spent  the  previous  winter. 

The  visit  to  the  igloo  revealed  in  itself  a  story  of  hardship 
that  brought  home  to  us  what  Campbell  never  would  have  told. 
There  was  only  one  place  in  this  smoke-begrimed  cavern  where 
a  short  man  could  stand  upright.  In  odd  corners  were  discarded 
clothes  saturated  with  blubber  and  absolutely  black.  The  weight 
of  these  garments  was  extraordinary,  and  we  experienced  strange 
sensations  as  we  examined  the  cheerless  hole  that  had  been  the 
only  home  of  six  of  our  hardiest  men.  No  cell  prisoners  ever 
lived  through  such  discomfort.  Most  of  the  Terra  Nova's 
crew  secured  mementoes  of  their  visit  to  this  unparalleled 
habitation. 

We  left  a  depot  of  provisions  at  the  head  of  the  Bay,  its 
position  being  marked  by  a  bamboo  and  flag.  This  depot  con- 
tains enough  food  stuffs  to  enable  a  party  of  five  or  six  men  to 
make  their  way  t%Butter  Point,  where  another  large  depot  exists. 

Very  early  on  January  26  we  left  these  inhospitable  shores, 
and  steaming  E.N.E.  to  get  clear  of  the  ice  belts  which  stream 
up  the  coast,  we  virtually  gained  the  open  Ross  Sea  by  the  even- 
ing, on  the  return  voyage  to  New  Zealand. 

An  attempt  was  made  to  close  the  Balleny  Islands,  which  do 
not  all  appear  to  be  correctly  charted,  but  thick  weather  and 
adverse  ice  conditions  prevented  our  accomplishing  this. 

The  Terra  Nova  stood  well  to  the  westward,  as  shown  in  the 
accompanying  track  chart,  until  she  was  in  a  good  position  for 
making  New  Zealand. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  in  latitude  640  15'  S.,  longitude 
1S9°  I5/E.  the  Terra  Nova  passed  close  to  an  iceberg  twenty- 
one  geographical  miles  in  length. 

On  February  2,  in  latitude  620  10' S.,  longitude  1580  15'  E., 


27 6  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION  [March 

during  thick  weather,  the  ship  was  beset  with  icebergs  and  at 
slow  speed  steamed  for  six  miles  along  the  face  of  one  huge  berg. 
She  was  in  a  narrow  channel  out  of  which  she  could  not  work 
owing  to  the  close  grouping  of  detached  icebergs  which  lay  on 
the  other  hand. 

This  last  season  the  ice  conditions  appeared  to  be  the  worst 
on  record  as  far  as  the  exterior  ice  was  concerned,  but  close  to 
Victoria  Land  we  were  never  seriously  hampered. 

The  biological,  magnetic,  and  hydrographical  work  was  con- 
tinued on  our  homeward  voyage,  and  on  February  10,  at  3  A.M., 
the  ship  reached  Oamuru,  a  small  port  on  the  east  coast  of  South 
Island,  New  Zealand.  Here  Lieutenant  Pennell  and  Dr.  At- 
kinson were  landed  with  the  Commander's  despatch,  which  was 
sent  to  the  Central  News  for  simultaneous  distribution  through- 
out the  world. 

The  Terra  Nova  remained  at  sea  until  Wednesday,  Feb- 
ruary 12,   when  she  returned  to  Lyttelton. 

Her  entry  into  the  harbour  was  very  different  from  the 
happy  return  we  had  so  looked  forward  to. 

With  flags  at  half-mast  we  steamed  into  the  port  and  were 
berthed  alongside  the  Harbour  Board  shed  by  Captain  Thorpe, 
the  harbour-master.  Thousands  came  to  meet  us  and  quietly 
notified  their  sympathy,  and  for  many  days  afterwards  we  re- 
ceived messages  of  condolence  from  all  parts  of  the  world. 

The  Voyage  Home 

The  ship  sailed  from  Lyttelton  on  her  homeward  voyage 
on  March  13,  19 13,  under  the  command  of  Lieutenant  Pennell. 
In  the  ward  room,  besides  the  Captain,  were  Rennick,  Nelson, 
Lillie,  Levick,  Anderson,  Mr.  Williams  and  Mr.  Cheetham. 
When  Bruce  went  home  by  mail  steamer  with  Lady  Scott,  Nelson 
volunteered  for  the  position  of  second  mate,  and  proved  himself 
a  most  efficient  officer.  Mr.  Gibson  Anderson  of  Christchurch 
volunteered  for  the  voyage,  and  was  taken  on  for  coal  trimming. 

The  ship  had  thirteen  dogs  on  board,  going  home  as  pets  of 
various  members.  Davies  built  platforms  for  the  dogs;  these 
stood  about  ten  inches  off  the  deck  and  had  a  ledge  three  or  four 
inches  high,  so  that  in  wet  weather  the  animals  would  be  off  the 
decks  and  in  hot  weather  have  air  circulating  under  them,  while, 


i9i3]  THE    NIMROD    ISLANDS  277 

when  the  ship  was  rolling,  they  had  the  ledges  to  support  them- 
selves against.  These  platforms  were  a  great  comfort  to  them. 
It  was  intended  to  run  down  the  Great  Circle  track  to  $6° 
South  and  then  east  along  that  parallel.  The  ship  made  a  good 
run  down  to  5 6°  South,  but  then  met  easterly  winds,  fortunately, 
i.     ,  however,  being  able  to  pass  about  fifteen  miles  north 

MdTCh  23  . 

1913,56° V  of  where  the  Nimrod  group  is  chartered  (from  infor- 
S.,  1 56° 25'  mation  received  nearly  a  hundred  years  ago) ,  and  got 
w'  two   soundings,   both  over  2000  fathoms.      Captain 

Davis  in  the  Nimrod  on  her  way  home  in  1909  passed  right  over 
the  charted  position,  but  weather  prevented  them  sounding. 
Either  this  group  is  charted  a  great  deal  out  of  position,  or,  what 
is  more  likely,  does  not  exist  at  all. 

North-east  winds  continuing,  the  ship  was  driven  a  good 
deal  farther  south  than  was  intended  and  met  with  a  considerable 

amount  of  fog  and  thick  weather. 
March  27,  Qn  ^  ^^  ^  passec[  three  bergs,  and  another 

Si'  s.,  142°  orie  on  the  29th,  but  the  weather  all  these  days  was 
29'  W.  so  thick  that  ice  could  only  be  seen  at  a  very  short 

distance.  On  the  29th,  however,  she  was  able  to  alter 
March  29,  to  the  north-east  and  soon  to  leave  these  rather  un- 
1913,  58°         comfortable  latitudes. 

39\  Sj>  T34°  There  was  a  marked  dearth  of  birds  all  across 

the  Southern  Ocean,  great  grey  shear-waters  and  the 
little  black-bellied  petrels  being  the  most  common,  while  the 
mollymawks  and  sooty  albatross  were  only  occasional  visitors. 

Cape  Horn  was  passed  on  April  11,  in  a  strong  gale;  but  as 
the  ship  entered  the  Straits  Le  Maire  at  daybreak  the  next  morn- 
ing the  wind  dropped  and  the  sun  rose  over  Staten  Island,  usher- 
ing in  a  beautiful  day;  and  from  here,  with  very  little  exception, 
fine  weather  was  experienced  all  the  way  to  England. 

While  crossing  the  shelf  on  which  the  Falkland  Islands  stand, 
Lillie  was  able  to  trawl,  and  once  again  after  leaving  Rio  de  Ja- 
neiro, for  the  last  time  on  the  commission,  the  catch  in  this  case 
being  almost  entirely  composed  of  swimming  crabs. 

Trawling  probably  caused  more  excitement  and  interest  in 
the  ship  than  anything  else  she  did,  and  the  instant  a  catch  came 
in-board  Lillie  was  surrounded  by  an  interested  group  of  men, 
very  anxious  to  see  if  any  startling  novelty  had  at  last  been 
dragged  up  from  the  bottom. 


278  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION 

Across  the  Atlantic  the  plankton  nets  were  put  over,  when 
possible,  for  half  an  hour  every  night,  and  a  good  series  of 
catches  was  made;  the  middle  watch  was  chosen,  as  experience 
had  shown  the  practical  impossibility  of  entirely  preventing  gar- 
bage, ashes,  &c,  from  being  thrown  overboard  during  the  day, 
and  the  nets  faithfully  collected  everything  that  went  over.  At 
night,  however,  after  washing  down  the  shoots  and  the  ship's 
side  where  ashes  had  been  thrown  over,  the  haul  was  made  and 
the  net  brought  in  absolutely  clean. 

Rio  was  reached  on  April  28,  and  the  ship  stopped  here  four 
days,  coaling,  taking  in  fresh  provisions,  and  giving  leave. 

While  crossing  the  tropics  the  dog  watches  were  taken  in  the 
stoke-hold  by  the  after-guard.  This  gave  each  fireman  a  sixteen 
hours'  spell  free  of  watch  two  days  out  of  every  three;  a  great 
boon  when  the  conditions  are  trying,  as  they  undoubtedly  are, 
in  the  engine-room  and  stokehold  in  the  tropics. 

The  ship  called  at  Fayal  in  the  Azores,  i-n  order  to  cable 
home,  and  anchored  off  Horta  on  June  2.  She  was  placed  in 
quarantine,  much  to  our  chagrin,  though  facilities  were  allowed 
for  sending  cables  and  getting  provisions. 

At  last,  on  June  11,  the  ship  dropped  anchor  in  Crow  Sound, 
Scilly  Islands,  where  two  days  were  spent,  painting  and  cleaning 
up,  and  on  June  14  she  arrived  at  Cardiff,  exactly  three  years 
after  leaving. 

Here  it  only  remains  to  acknowledge  the  exemplary  conduct 
of  the  ship's  company,  fore  and  aft.  Every  member  worked  to 
help  the  Expedition  forward  loyally  and  cheerfully,  accepting 
each  position  as  it  came,  all  hands  doing  their  best  to  help  mat- 
ters forward  and  to  see  the  humorous  side  of  everything. 


East    180   West 


Reproduced  at  Stanford's  Geocf'. Estab*. 


New  York  :  Dodd,  Mead  &  Company. 


UNIVERSITAS   ANTARCTICA! 
Lecture  on  the  Ross  Ice  Barrier  by  Captain  Scott 

June  7,  191 1,  8  P.M.    {From  notes  by  Griffith  Taylor) 

Section       I. — Flotation. 

„  II. — Limits. 

„  III. — Crevasses. 

„  IV. — Temperature  and  Pressure. 

,,  V. — Movement  of  the  Ice  Sheet. 

„  VI. — Method  of  Growth. 

„  VII. — Mainland  Glaciers. 

„  VIII. — Inland  Ice  Sheet. 

I.  Flotation. — Let  us  first  of  all  consider  the  question  of  the 
flotation  of  the  Barrier.  There  can  be,  I  think,  no  doubt  that 
it  is  afloat.  On  pages  417-420  in  the  'Narrative  of  the  Dis- 
covery '  will  be  found  an  account  of  the  Ross  Barrier,  in  which 
we  read  that  its  face  is  360  miles  long,  and  that  the  sea  exceeds 
1800  feet  in  depth  along  the  greater  part  of  this  distance. 

The  ice  wall  is  150  feet  high  here  in  places,  and  we  must 
allow  for  a  much  greater  depth  which  is  submerged  below  the 
level  of  the  sea. 

The  ratio  of  submerged  to  visible  ice  appears  to  vary,  and 
should  be  investigated  on  bergs  in  our  vicinity.  Even  if  it  is  7 
to  1,  then  the  Barrier  is  afloat  at  its  edge,  and  the  same  is  of 
course  the  case  if  the  ratio  be  taken  as  4  to  1.  Professor  David 
quotes  an  example  of  1  to  1,  but  that  is  certainly  exceptional. 

It  seems  certain  that  there  is  a  layer  of  water  under  the  great 
Ice  Barrier,  which  has  five  times  the  extent  of  the  North  Sea. 

II.  Limits. — We  have  several  observations  of  the  ice  front, 
notably  Ross  in  1840,  and  the  Discovery  in  1902.  The  latter 
showed  a  recession  in  general  of  from  15  to  20  miles,  with  a  max- 
imum of  45  miles.  In  191 1,  however,  Pennell  reported  that  the 
conditions  appeared  to  have  changed  little  during  the  last  ten 
years. 


2  8o  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION 

This  means  that  45  miles  at  any  rate  must  have  been  afloat. 
The  Ross  Sea  does  not  get  shallower  so  far  as  we  know. 

We  must  remember  that  the  wall  near  Balloon  Bight  varies 
greatly  in  height.  If  the  ratio  of  the  edge  of  the  Barrier  above 
and  below  water  line  be  taken  as  1  to  4,  then  the  ice  sheet  seems 
to  vary  in  thickness  from  70  to  700  feet,  with  an  average  of 
about  400  feet. 

But  it  is  quite  conceivable  that  this  sheet  is  extremely  thin  in 
places. 

III.  Crevasses. — These  natural  breaks  in  the  continuity  of 
the  ice  have  been  studied  in  some  detail.  We  observe  that  they 
are  radial  near  the  Bluff  and  White  Island.  They  have  parallel 
sides,  both  in  plan  and  section.  No  crevasses  seem  to  occur  more 
than  15  miles  from  the  land.  Curiously  enough,  none  of  these 
seem  to  have  any  great  depth,  for  I  saw  platforms  about  50  feet 
down,  and  rarely  got  a  lead  down  beyond  8  fathoms  (50  feet). 

Let  us  compare  an  ice  sheet  over  land  with  a  similar  sheet 
extending  over  water.  In  the  first  type  one  could  not  expect  un- 
crevassed  areas  of  any  size  if  the  ice  were  moving  over  the  land. 
(Though  we  must  remember  that  the  stationary  ice  over  the 
Plateau  is  not  crevassed.) 

Again,  over  a  sea  surface  the  crevasses  would  only  extend 
for  a  limited  distance,  in  fact  to  sea-level,  where  they  would 
freeze  over.     This  may  account  for  the  limited  depth  observed. 

Near  the  Barne  and  Shackleton  Inlets  the  great  lateral  trench 
was  filled  with  pools  due  to  thaw  waters,  and  this  was  100  feet 
deep.  If  the  sheet  were  1000  feet  thick,  one  would  expect  this 
1  rupture  crack  '  to  be  much  deeper. 

IV.  Temperature  and  Pressure. — The  temperature  in  the 
crevasses  seemed  fairly  constant  near  the  land,  but  when  farther 
away  it  seemed  to  rise  with  depth.  This  looks  like  the  result  of 
a  subglacial  sea. 

The  atmospheric  pressures  as  taken  on  the  journey  to  82°  S. 
varied  very  little  from  those  at  Hut  Point: 


At    79°- 

+ 

•045"  difference 

„     8o°, 

+ 

•04" 

,,     81°, 

+ 

•06" 

,.     82°, 

- 

•03" 

MOVEMENT    OF    THE    BARRIER  281 

The  barometric  gradient  probably  rises  as  one  goes  south,  so 
that  one  cannot  use  the  barometer  to  obtain  accurate  levels. 

One  could  get  equal  (and  useless)  readings  all  the  way  if 
the  change  in  levels  corresponded  to  the  change  in  barometric 
gradient. 

In  working  up  the  meteorology  notes,  barometer  figures  based 
on  Royds'  journey — who  went  nearly  parallel  to  the  Barrier  edge 
— were  unfortunately  used  to  obtain  results  for  the  Southern 
Journey. 

Finally,  we  may  conclude  that  the  tendency  of  all  the  facts  is 
to  support  the  '  Floating  Barrier '  theory. 

V.  Movement  of  the  Barrier. — There  is  certainly  not  enough 
inclination  in  the  Barrier  Ice  Sheet  to  account  for  its  motion. 
The  Bay  of  Whales  (or  Balloon  Bight)  has  not  moved  much, 
and  this  may  be  taken  as  the  eastern  limit  of  the  moving  sheet. 
We  don't  of  course  know  the  extent  of  the  Ice  Sheet  to  the 
south-east. 

Depot  A  moved  608  yards  in  thirteen  and  a  half  months, 
which  agrees  closely  with  the  500  of  movement  observed  by  the 
Nimrod. 

We  must  take  note  of  the  direction  of  movement  observed, 
for  this  may  not  represent  the  total  movement.  It  may  give  the 
minimum,  and  this  result  is  very  startling  in  view  of  the  sluggish 
land  glaciers. 

Simpson  suggests  that  the  deposition  of  snow  on  the  Barrier 
leads  to  an  expansion  due  to  the  increase  of  weight.  If  it  is  350 
miles  long  and  400  feet  thick,  then  the  ratio  of  thickness  to 
length  is  1  to  5250.  This  can  be  adequately  compared  to  a  sheet 
of  cardboard  %  inch  thick  and  the  length  of  this  hut  (50  feet). 

The  ice  sheet  can  only  move  to  the  north.  If  we  assume  it 
moves  1000  yards,  and  that  175  square  miles  is  the  amount 
moved  north,  then  the  mass  to  be  added  to  keep  the  breaking 
front  about  the  same  position  is  11-7  cubic  miles. 

Let  us  consider  the  snow  deposition.  It  is  stated  that  about 
4  inches  of  compressed  snow  falls  per  year.  The  blizzards  evi- 
dently build  up  shallow  flat  hummocks  here  and  there,  and  may 
cover  the  whole  surface  at  the  fourth  effort. 

The  old  Discovery  Depot  was  covered  in  13  inches  of  old 
snow  or  9  inches  of  ice. 


282  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION 

If  we  assume  the  Barrier  area  is  350  X  350  miles,  then  we 
get  a  mass  of  16-5  cubic  miles. 

The  difference  in  these  two  interesting  figures — 16-5  cubic 
miles  and  11-7  cubic  miles — may  be  due  to  an  ablation  of  the 
under  surface  of  the  sheet  by  warm  water.  However,  we  may 
assume  that  there  is  sufficient  snowfall  on  the  Barrier  to  account 
for  the  movement,  which  is  a  fact  of  the  first  importance. 

At  the  edge  of  the  Barrier  there  is  a  curved  ascent,  and 
'  doming '  is  common  in  bergs.  May  not  this  curving  be  a  result 
of  the  outward  expansion? 

The  movement  of  the  northern  glaciers  seems  to  be  much 
greater  than  that  of  the  Beardmore  and  southern  glaciers.  Per- 
haps it  is  six  times  as  great.  But  the  slow  movement  in  the  south 
may  still  be  sufficient  to  account  for  the  ice  sheet's  advance. 

The  fact  that  the  great  lateral  trench  keeps  open  looks  as  if 
rival  motions  were  at  work. 

As  far  as  1700  W.,  Campbell  says  that  the  191 1  survey 
showed  the  western  edge  of  the  Barrier  face  to  be  stable,  and 
with  no  change  like  that  since  Ross's  time.  Of  course  there  may 
be  catastrophic  years.  We  know  that  icebergs  are  very  plentiful 
in  some  years  in  the  Southern  Ocean.  This  last  summer  our 
Glacier  Tongue  broke  away  after  remaining  for  many  years. 

VII.  Mainland  Glaciers. — There  is  very  little  evidence  of 
large  motion.  David  says  the  Nansen  Glacier  presses  out  the 
sea  ice;  but  quite  probably  it  is  the  other  way,  and  due  to  the 
sea  ice  pressing  against  the  Glacier  Tongue.  The  movement  of 
the  glaciers  is  a  measure  of  the  pressure  behind;  they  are,  how- 
ever, so  cold  in  these  regions  that  their  movement  is  sluggish  com- 
pared with  those  in  temperate  climes. 

I  do  not  think  there  is  anything  like  13  inches  annual  snow- 
fall on  the  Ice  Plateau.  If  there  is  recession  along  the  coast, 
the  same  must  obtain  on  the  great  Ice  Plateau.  The  high  level 
moraines  decrease  in  height  above  the  present  surface  of  the  ice, 
the  debris  being  2000  feet  up  near  the  coast  and  only  200  feet 
above  near  the  plateau.  However,  the  Beardmore  from  its  great 
crevasses  seems  to  show  extra  movement. 

VIII.  The  Inland  Ice  Sheet. — All  our  data  are  hypothetical 
— we  are  erecting  an  edifice  of  theoretical  bricks !  We  may  give 
it  the  area  of  %  of  the  circle  drawn  with  a  radius  of  1200  miles. 


DEBATE   ON   BARRIER   PROBLEMS  283 

There  seems  to  be  a  descent  from  9000  feet  at  the  Pole  to 
2000  near  the  edge,  and  then  a  rapid  fall  at  the  sea-line. 

We  may  surmise  50  to  100  yards  movement  per  annum  across 
the  edge  of  the  Plateau,  with  a  thickness  of  700  or  800  feet;  but 
all  this  is  merely  a  fine  effort  of  the  imagination! 

The  ice  cliffs  all  round  the  continent  seem  much  the  same. 
The  depths  over  the  shelf  at  the  edge  seem  of  about  the  same 
order  also. 

We  must  remember  that  the  new  set  of  facts  of  the  Great 
Plateau  bounded  by  the  new  range  of  mountains  was  never 
thought  of  before  1903,  and  is  not  fully  digested  yet. 

I  believe  that  the  snowfall  increases  towards  the  fringe  of 
the  plateau  sheet. 

These  facts  suffice  to  account  for  the  outflow  of  Antarctic 
bergs.  In  latitudes  66°  S.  and  73 °  S.  we  iind  the  same  thickness 
of  the  ice  cliffs.  It  must,  however,  be  admitted  that  much  of  this 
theorising  is  very  weak. 

Finally,  with  regard  to  the  question  of  the  high  continental 
plateau  and  the  land  under  the  ice  sheet,  I  will  ask  the  Physiog- 
rapher to  descant. 

Discussion 

As  usual,  Captain  Scott  called  on  the  members  in  the  order 
in  which  they  sat  at  the  table. 

Oates  commented  on  the  difficulty  of  detecting  differences  in 
the  Barrier  level.  He  often  saw  herds  of  cattle  on  the  ice  sur- 
face which  turned  out  to  be  debris  of  previous  camps. 

Wilson  said  that  if  the  outward  movement  was  due  to  a  flat- 
tening of  the  Barrier  mass,  then  he  would  expect  the  great 
Shackleton  Inlet  trench  to  fill  up. 

Wright  suggested  that  it  was  aground  before  the  great  lateral 
trench  was  reached. 

Taylor  drew  attention  to  the  great  amount  of  surface-sculp- 
turing due,  not  to  pressure,  but  to  thaw  waters  and  direct  sun- 
melting.  Some  of  the  shallow  crevasses  might  be  due  to  this  and 
not  to  movement  or  pressure — as  on  Butter  Point. 

If  the  Ferrar  Tongue  had  grown  since  Captain  Scott's  visit, 
then  these  Antarctic  glaciers  were  by  no  means  sluggish.  Might 
not  the  slope  apparent  at  the  edge  of  the  Barrier  be  due  to  the 
greater  weathering  at  the  edge,  due  to  the  presence  of  warm 


284  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

waters  and  stronger  winds  ?  He  suggested  that  the  word  '  gla- 
cierised  '  should  be  used  for  lands  covered  by  glaciers  instead  of 
'  glaciated,'  which  might  be  kept  for  land  forms  exposed  on 
recession. 

Fie  discussed  the  probable  structure  of  the  continent,  with 
(  block  '  coast  near  Ross  Island  and  an  '  Andean  '  Range  near 
America.  The  level  surface  of  the  Plateau  was  largely  due  to 
the  preservative  action  of  the  ice  cap.  But  it  would  also  seem  to 
exhibit  '  senile  '  features,  due  to  a  previous  cycle  of  normal 
erosion. 

Probably  Antarctica  was  a  primeval  solid  block  of  the  earth's 
crust  of  the  type  known  as  a  '  Shield.' 

Nelson  thought  the  increase  in  snow  above  would  certainly 
be  balanced  by  the  solution  below.  He  thought  the  face  of  the 
Barrier  would  be  curved  to  the  north,  unless  something  were 
affecting  it  besides  purely  mechanical  agents. 

Simpson  said  that  simply  lowering  thermometers  into  the 
crevasses  was  useless.  They  should  be  buried  in  ice  in  the  crev- 
asse sides. 

Debenham  said  that  the  Admiralty  Range  was  certainly  not 
of  a  true  Pacific  type. 

The  meeting  adjourned  about  10  p.m.,  but  a  select  group  of 
debaters  carried  on  the  arguments  until  12.15  A-M- 


A  RESUME  OF  THE  PHYSIOGRAPHY  AND  GLACIAL 
GEOLOGY  OF  VICTORIA  LAND,  ANTARCTICA 

By  Griffith  Taylor,  B.Sc,  B.E.,  B.A.,  F.G.S. 

It  is  always  a  wise  principle  in  research  to  proceed  from  the 
known  to  the  unknown.  So  little  has  been  written  on  the  subject 
in  question  that  we  should  have  almost  a  blank  sheet  were  it  not 
for  the  geologists  of  Shackleton's  Expedition,   whose  detailed 


Sea.  Level  ^  Jwtrfoettlitrflaaaz 

V&rtLcoL  Section  showing  foundered,  asidfmcturvd  east  §hj>e  <rfV{cfori&£a.rui(j$''S.i4. 


MfBartUFrere  J 15$ 


gtVamerteef  VaaficOcean. 

-Diane.  Saf,  I     J 
, ^{  i  SmJan 

T 


Verikal  Section  shaving  {cuncUv&L  axvifmctund  eastshpe  cf  Australia-  {ly'Slat) 

(  AfUrTnfcssor'Davui  ) 


work  is  not  yet  published.  Let  us  glance  at  a  map  of  the  South 
Polar  regions,  however,  and  see  if  we  can  deduce  any  useful 
principles  from  neighbouring  lands. 

The  physiography  of  the  eastern  coast  of  Australia  has  been 
subjected  to  a  somewhat  detailed  investigation  during  the  last 
ten  years,  with  the  result  that  it  is  found  to  exhibit  splendid  ex- 
amples of  subsidence,  trough  faulting,  and  rivers  '  drowned  '  by 
the  sea.  Great  slices  of  the  coast  have  sunk  below  the  waves 
fairly  lately  in  geological  times,  so  that  many  of  the  great  rivers 


286  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

of  Eastern  Australia  now  rise  on  the  present  coast  (the  old 
divide)  and  flow  inland  to  the  central  lowlands.  The  features 
characteristic  of  this  portion  of  the  crust  are  therefore :  an  ele- 
vated coastal  region  sloping  gradually  to  the  west  and  sharply 
truncated  by  '  faults  '  on  the  east. 

Let  us  now  journey  southward  to  Antarctica  and  take  a 
bird's-eye  view  of  the  coast  of  the  Ross  Sea  and  of  the  great 
mountain  range  which  leads  from  the  Ross  Sea  and  McMurdo 
Sound  almost  to  the  Pole.  We  notice  at  once  that  this  range 
extends  almost  due  north  and  south,  as  was  the  case  in  Australia, 
that  it  practically  constitutes  the  shore  line,  that  it  has  a  steep 
eastern  slope — often  dropping  ten  thousand  feet  in  a  few  miles 
— and  that  it  descends  gradually  on  the  west  to  a  uniform  land 
mass  of  a  plateau  type. 

It  seems  evident  that  these  points  of  resemblance  are  not 
accidental.  The  great  earth  movements  which  affected  Australia 
in  middle  and  late  Tertiary  times  also  affected  Antarctica.  A  re- 
adjustment of  equilibrium  raised  the  west  and  depressed  the  east 
in  both  continents.  The  central  portion  of  Australia,  consisting 
of  ancient  rocks  which  have  been  planed  down  to  a  uniform  level 
by  the  normal  agents  of  erosion — by  rivers,  wind,  &c. — is  an 
example  of  a  peneplain.  It  was  formed  in  middle  Tertiary  times, 
and  bears  all  the  evidence  of  '  old  age  '  in  a  land  surface.  As 
we  have  seen,  it  has  been  elevated  and  now  the  rivers  are  cutting 
it  down  again,  forming  canyons  all  round  its  coastal  edges,  and 
the  '  cycle  of  erosion  '  has  commenced  anew.  In  Antarctica  the 
land  below  the  central  ice  plateau  would  appear  to  be  a  similar 
peneplain.  The  comparatively  slight  depth  of  the  outlet  gla- 
ciers seems  to  indicate  that  the  ice  cap  is  not  very  thick,  probably 
one  or  two  thousand  feet  only.  The  peneplain  is  however  ele- 
vated to  eight  thousand  feet  instead  of  one  to  three  thousand  as 
in  Australia. 

It  is,  however,  with  the  margin  of  the  ice  cap  that  these  few 
pages  are  concerned.  Just  as  in  Australia  beautiful  canyons  and 
falls  have  resulted  from  the  attack  of  the  weather  on  the  margins 
of  the  plateau,  so  in  Antarctica  the  ice  rivers  and  agents  of  frost 
erosion  have  carved  out  their  own  characteristic  topography. 

We  know  from  the  fossils  that  warmer  conditions  existed  in 
Mesozoic  times  in  Antarctica,  probably  in  early  Tertiary  times. 
Moreover,  the  elevation  of  the  land  so  many  thousand  feet  has 


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PLATEAU   AND    MOUNTAINS  287 

undoubtedly  given  rise  to  a  permanent  refrigerating  system  of 
winds  which  has  made  Antarctic  coasts  much  more  inclement  than 
they  would  have  been  with  a  less  elevated  interior. 

There  is  practically  no  trace  of  pre-glacial  topography  such 
as  might  be  shown  by  a  moulding  of  the  inland  ice  cap.  We  may 
picture  the  rock  surface  like  that  of  upland  Norway,  as  a  gently 
rolling  plateau.  As  the  ice  mantle  covered  Antarctica,  occupying 
the  more  pronounced  swellings  first,  and  then  spreading  in  lobes 
of  ice  down  the  broad  depressions,  we  may  imagine  that  a  very 
little  difference  in  the  contour  might  determine  the  position  of 
the  great  outlet  glaciers  where  the  ice  cap  drained  away  to  the 
sea.  In  other  words,  the  glacier  valleys  do  not  appear  to  owe 
much  to  pre-glacial  topography. 

Let  us  now  survey  the  marginal  mountain  range  and  the  ice 
plateau  more  closely.  The  plateau  seems  to  rise  to  11,000  feet 
near  the  South  geographic  Pole,  and  decreases  gradually  to  the 
north,  being  about  7000  feet  at  the  South  magnetic  Pole.  The 
mountain  ranges  have  peaks,  such  as  Markham  and  Lister,  rising 
to  15,000  and  13,000  feet  respectively,  but  the  average  height 
is  perhaps  about  9000  or  10,000  feet,  while  for  considerable 
stretches  near  Granite  Harbour  they  are  only  6000  or  8000  feet 
high.  Every  20  or  30  miles  this  fairly  continuous  range  is  broken 
by  a  huge  '  outlet '  glacier.  Many  of  these  are  now  well  known, 
such  as  the  Beardmore,  which  is  over  100  miles  long  and  30 
miles  wide,  the  Ferrar,  Mackay,  David,  &c.  They  form  the 
only  routes  from  the  coast  to  the  interior,  and  were  it  not  for 
the  ice  falls  where  the  glacier  covers  some  irregularity  in  its  rock 
floor,  or  the  more  dangerous  crevassed  areas,  where  it  sweeps 
round  a  corner,  or  receives  the  thrust  of  a  large  tributary,  they 
would  not  be  difficult  to  traverse  with  sledges.  The  grade  is  not 
very  steep,  and  they  are  to  some  extent  sheltered  from  the  bliz- 
zard drift  which  is  the  great  obstacle  to  Barrier  and  plateau 
journeys.  Their  detailed  topography  is  however  very  different 
from  that  of  an  area  subjected  to  '  normal '  erosion. 

The  regions  more  especially  investigated  in  the  two  sledge 
journeys  of  the  Western  Geological  Parties  in  191 1  and  19 12 
were  the  following : 

(a)  The  Ferrar  and  Taylor  outlet  glaciers  (770  40'). 

(b)  The  Koettlitz  ice  delta  and  its  hinterland  (780  20'). 

(c)  Granite  Harbour  and  the  Mackay  outlet  glacier  (770). 


288 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


(d)  The  Great  Piedmont  glacier  between  Granite  Harbour 
and  New  Harbour  (770  20'). 

Each  of  these  regions  presented  its  own  peculiar  topography, 
and  the  four  were  diverse  enough  to  embody  almost  the  whole 
cycle  of  glacial  erosion  within  their  domain. 

(a)  The  Ferrar  and  Taylor  i  Outlet'  Glaciers  and  the  Dry 
Valley. — These  two  glaciers  are  now  connected  by  an  ice  col  near 
Knob  Head  Mountain,  but  were  originally  distinct  parallel  gla- 


'Bu&rTomi 


MtL*t*randCu>mS  *u,ut  of  Taylarqba* 

HOOO-      Kussbaum'Riyd 


Upper  Ferrar  (jiicier 
Knob hfead  SOOO' 


Main  Thysw^mpltlc  Features  of  tk&Avposed  Valla/s  of 
the  Ferrar  Qu  Taybr  Cjlack'rs  {JlookmqS.  West) 


ciers  draining  the  ice  plateau.  As  one  marches  up  the  Ferrar 
Glacier  and  notes  its  crevasses  and  ice  falls,  one  wonders  what 
the  rock  floor  is  really  like — under  the  ice  river.  Just  5  miles  to 
the  north  is  another  glacier  which  furnishes  the  answer  to  this 
question,  for  the  Taylor  Glacier  now  stops  short  25  miles  from 
the  sea,  and  in  Dry  Valley  we  see  how  all  the  other  valleys  will 
appear  when  the  ice  age  shall  pass  away  from  Antarctica. 

Starting  from  New  Harbour  at  the  mouth  of  Dry  Valley, 
the  latter  presents  a  typical  catenary  cross-section.  A  splendid 
pair  of  walls  with  the  characteristic  slope  of  33 °  defines  the  gla- 
cier trough.  There  is  no  large  terminal  moraine  near  the  sea, 
which  seems  to  denote  a  fairly  uniform  and  perhaps  rapid  retro- 
cession of  the  glacier.  About  6  miles  from  the  coast  a  narrow 
defile  appears  on  the  north  side,  but  the  rounded  valley  floor  rises 


3j===jg 


VOL.   II — 19 


29o  SCOTT'S   LAST   EXPEDITION 

gradually  to  2000  feet  over  the  greater  part  of  the  trough.  West 
of  this  point  there  is  a  sudden  drop  from  the  Nussbaum  Bar  (or 
Riegel)  into  the  next  'bowl'  of  the  valley.  This  is  filled  with 
moraine  material  to  the  depth  of  several  hundred  feet,  for  the 
drainage  of  the  '  bowl '  is  away  from  the  sea  to  the  salty  waters 
of  Lake  Bonney.  The  defile  previously  mentioned  is  about  1500 
feet  deep,  and  would  seem  to  be  a  water-cut  gorge  denoting  an 
inter-glacial  period. 

Lake  Bonney  is  about  3  miles  long  and  is  separated  into  two 
portions  by  a  granite  bar  500  feet  high.  This  also  is  traversed 
by  a  narrow  gorge  on  the  northern  side  of  the  trough  and  is  a 
smaller  edition  of  the  Nussbaum  '  Bar  '  or  Riegel.  Then  about 
y2  mile  farther  west  we  reach  the  snout  of  the  Taylor  Glacier, 
which  appears  to  be  overriding  moraine  material  at  its  extremity. 
The  surface  of  the  latter  rises  600  feet  in  a  very  short  distance, 
and  is  carved  into  alcoves  and  gullies  by  the  sun — all  of  these 
erosion  features  presenting  a  steep  face  to  the  north  and  a  gently 
sloping  one  to  the  south.  The  thaw  streams  on  the  glacier  and 
in  the  moraine-filled  Dry  Valley  all  flow  to  the  N.E. 

Visitors  to  Switzerland  will  recognise  how  closely  this  alter- 
nation of  '  gorge,'  '  riegel,'  and  '  bowl '  recalls  the  classic  glacial 
valley  south  of  the  Saint  Gothard  Tunnel.  Moreover,  Lake 
Lucerne  owes  its  cross-like  plan  to  the  action  of  two  parallel 
glaciers — one  of  which  overflowed  (near  the  Rigi)  into  the 
adjoining  valley.  The  same  process  is  being  carried  on  to-day 
where  the  '  apposed  '  glaciers  of  the  Ferrar  and  Taylor  valleys 
are  joined  in  Siamese  twin  fashion  south-east  of  Knob  Head. 

(b)  The  Koettlitz  Glacier  cascades  over  ice  falls  near  Heald 
Island  and  reaches  sea  level  while  still  20  miles  from  its  snout. 
This  20  miles  of  low-level  glacier  is  extremely  interesting,  for  it 
would  appear  to  be  a  stagnant  area  whose  chief  characteristics 
are  due  to  the  action  of  thaw  waters  on  an  old  glacier  surface. 
The  pinnacles,  bastions,  and  bergs  have  been  described  in  the 
preceding  narrative.  Here  again  the  drainage  is  directed  diag- 
onally across  the  glacier  to  the  north-east.  Some  movement  has 
taken  place,  for  the  edge  of  uniform  glacier  sheet  on  the  south 
is  fringed  by  great  bergs  which  are  differently  oriented,  though 
all  sealed  in  the  extremely  ancient  water-cut  labyrinth  of  ice 
which  constitutes  the  north-west  portion  of  the  delta. 

Below  the  scarp  of  the  Royal  Society  Range  is  a  hinterland 


292  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION 

of  parallel  valleys.  These  are  about  10  or  12  miles  long,  and 
are  in  many  cases  occupied  by  small  glaciers  in  the  western  half 
of  the  valley.  They  are  identical  with  the  c  finger '  valleys  de- 
scribed in  the  reports  on  the  glacial  geology  of  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, U.S.A.  Narrow  ridges  about  3000  feet  high  separate 
them.  Some  *  hang  '  a  thousand  feet  above  the  Koettlitz.  Char- 
acteristic hills,  triangular  in  plan,  occur  where  these  valleys  join, 
and  all  of  them  '  head '  in  beautiful  cwms.  Above  these  cwms, 
and  more  cwms,  fret  the  scarp  of  Mt.  Lister  over  the  whole 
extent  of  its  10,000  foot  face.  There  is  little  doubt  that  we  have 
here  an  example  of  the  way  the  glacial  cycle  commences  its  opera- 
tions, for  this  is  a  fault  scarp  of  comparatively  recent  date. 

(c)  Granite  Harbour,  like  New  Harbour,  is  probably  a  relic 
of  the  period  of  glacial  maximum  when  the  ice  flood  exerted  tre- 
mendous erosive  power  on  its  bed,  and  was  able  to  erode  far 
below  sea-level.  We  shall  however  never  be  able  to  witness  these 
maximum  forces  in  operation.  Because  a  dwindling  river  has 
little  effect  on  the  topography  it  would  be  foolish  to  deny  the 
action  of  a  great  river  in  flood;  just  as  our  observations  in  the 
Antarctic  on  a  nearly  stagnant  or  receding  glaciation  are  not 
to  be  taken  as  descriptive  of  the  most  active  periods  in  glacial 
history. 

The  first  feature  that  strikes  the  geologist  is  that  as  one  pn> 
ceeds  north  there  is  less  and  less  land  exposed  below  the  snow  and 
ice  mantle.  This  implies,  I  think,  that  the  precipitation  in  the 
south-west  corner  of  McMurdo  Sound  is  extremely  little,  and  in- 
creases both  northward  and  southward.  The  most  striking  fea- 
ture in  the  harbour — -the  Ice  Tongue — has  been  described  in  the 
narrative.  The  Mackay  Glacier  moves  3  feet  a  day,  as  already 
recorded.  Mention  must  be  made  of  the  ridge  separating  the 
new  glacier  from  the  Devil's  Punch  Bowl.  This  has  certainly 
been  covered  quite  lately  by  the  new  glacier.  The  harder  dykes 
are  striated,  but  the  ridge  is  for  the  most  part  covered  with  gran- 
ite debris.  There  is  practically  no  englacial  rock  debris  in  the 
glacier,  so  that  one  is  led  to  the  important  conclusion  that  the 
floor  of  the  new  glacier  is  covered  with  rock  debris  and  that  no 
erosion  is  taking  place  under  this  fairly  large  glacier.  What  was 
the  floor  of  the  Mackay  Glacier  at  its  period  of  greater  area  is 
exposed  in  many  places  1000  feet  above  the  sea  ice  in  the  form 
of  rock-strewn  plateaux. 


GREAT    PIEDMONT    GLACIER  293 

One  of  the  most  interesting  features  is  the  evolution  of  the 
cwm  which  is  indicated  on  all  sides  in  the  steep  facetted  slopes. 
On  Discovery  Bluff  are  the  couloirs  or  chimneys;  on  Mt.  Eng- 
land these  become  somewhat  funnel-shaped;  on  the  face  of  the 
Kar  Plateau  they  deepen  to  a  definite  if  shallow  bowl.  They 
obviously  only  originate  on  steep  slopes  where  the  icy  covering  is 
shallow.  Avalanche  Bay  and  the  Devil's  Punch  Bowl  are  respec- 
tively filled  and  empty  cwms,  both  at  sea  level.  Along  the  south- 
ern crest  of  the  valley  are  giant  cwms  each  with  its  own  glacier. 
Here  the  Miller  Glacier  has  cut  through  the  divide  and  links  the 
Mackay  presumably  to  the  upper  Debenham  Glacier.  The  walls 
are  facetted,  but  not  much  facetting  is  visible — for  the  Mackay 
would  seem  to  be  filling  its  bed  to  a  greater  extent  than  the  Ferrar 
or  Taylor  glaciers.  Traces  of  a  high  level  plateau  at  3000  feet 
are  evident  all  around  Mt.  Tryggve  Gran,  and  the  ice  sheet 
drains  thence  into  large  tributary  glaciers  such  as  the  Cleveland. 

The  upland  topography  is  of  three  types.  There  are  moun- 
tains, such  as  Tryggve  Gran,  whose  shape  is  due  to  their  strati- 
graphy. This  peak  is  flat-topped  owing  to  the  presence  of  a  dole- 
rite  capping.  Others  exhibit  the  typical  cusps  of  the  Matterhorn 
type,  due  to  cwms  encroaching  on  three  sides.  Others  again, 
such  as  Mt.  Forde,  the  Whale  Back  and  Whitefinger,  are  now 
like  giant  nunakoller  *  for  the  cusps  have  yielded  to  the  smooth- 
ing action  of  frost  erosion. 

Scattered  over  the  glacier  are  the  nunatakker*  (such  as 
Mount  Suess)  and  nunakoller*  (Gondola  Ridge  and  Redciiffs) 
which  have  been  described  in  the  narrative. 

(d)  Space  does  not  permit  of  any  adequate  account  of  the 
Great  Piedmont  Glacier.  It  has  a  seaward  edge  some  200  feet 
thick  over  the  land,  and  for  a  considerable  portion  its  front  would 
appear  to  be  floating,  for  here  the  edge  is  but  30  feet  above  the 
sea  ice  (and  presumably  200  feet  below  water  level).  It  rises 
to  some  2000  feet  above  the  sea  about  3  or  4  miles  from  the 
coast,  and  is  beautifully  moulded  over  hidden  nunakoller.  One 
or  two  of  these  project  above  the  ice  about  a  thousand  feet,  and 
the  mountains  behind  exhibit  beautifully  the  relation  of  lower 
glaciated  slopes  to  cuspate  peaks.     The  plane  separating  these 

*  The  two  types  of  islands  projecting  through  the  ice  sheet  need  to  be  distinguished. 
Nuna-tak  is  '  lonely  peak,9  and  I  suggest  nuna-kol  {fide  Gran)  for  the  rounded  ridges 
which  have  been  covered  by  the  ice-flood. 


294  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION 

topographic  types  is  here  about  3000  feet  high.  Behind  many 
of  the  rocky  capes  the  piedmont  appears  to  be  nearly  stagnant, 
or  receding  slowly,  for  the  ice  either  begins  to  thicken  very  grad- 
ually, or  is  greatly  sun-weathered.  In  no  case  is  there  any  evi- 
dence of  pressure  or  '  overhang '  on  the  capes,  though  the 
crevasses  opposite  the  valley  glaciers  show  some  movement,  no 
doubt  due  to  the  pressure  of  the  latter. 

In  conclusion  it  will  be  of  interest  to  trace  the  features  accom- 
panying the  growth  of  an  ice  age  as  exhibited  in  Victoria  Land. 
Near  Cape  Evans  the  change  of  a  snow  drift  into  a  glacieret, 
and  of  the  latter  into  a  glacier,  can  be  studied  in  many  places. 
The  later  stages  depend  greatly  on  the  topography.  If  the  land 
is  flat — i.e.  part  of  an  old  peneplain — the  ice  sheet  merely  spreads 
out  in  great  lobes,  of  which  examples  occur  near  the  Solitary 
Rocks  on  the  flattened  slopes  north  of  the  Taylor  Glacier.  This 
grows  larger  and  spreads  out  laterally,  and,  to  my  mind,  plays  a 
protective  part,  as  in  the  Great  Piedmont. 

If,  however,  we  are  dealing  with  steep  contours,  the  incipi- 
ent glaciation — accompanied  by  water  at  this  stage — cuts  out 
couloirs  and  shallow  cwms.  The  next  stage  is  probably  that  rep- 
resented by  the  scarp  of  Lister.  Ultimately  some  cwms  encroach 
on  others  and  dominating  \  finger  valleys  '  are  initiated.  These 
ultimately  become  i  outlet '  glaciers. 

The  '  outlet '  glaciers  rise  to  a  maximum,  overriding  the 
slopes  and  carving  out  what  later  appear  as  shoulders  or  benches. 
At  this  period  there  is  true  glacial  erosion.  The  riegel  are  over- 
ridden and  planed  down,  the  fiords  are  cut  out,  the  lakes  are 
deepened.  Later  the  snowfall  diminishes  and  the  erosive  power 
decreases,  and  the  glaciers  dwindle  through  all  the  stages  re- 
corded by  Hobbs.  The  Beardmore  Glacier  with  its  tributaries 
largely  entering  at  grade,  the  Mackay  with  a  few  '  hanging ' 
glaciers,  the  Ferrar  with  a  preponderating  number  of  tributaries 
hanging  on  the  slopes  of  the  main  trough,  are  examples  of  the 
earlier  stages  in  this  decline.  The  Koettlitz  with  its  tributaries 
5  miles  back  from  the  main  glacier  and  the  Taylor  Glacier  with 
its  extraordinary  ice-free  outlet  trough  25  miles  long  are  later 
stages  in  the  retrocession  of  the  ice  mantle. 


THE  GEOLOGICAL  HISTORY  OF  SOUTH  VICTORIA 

LAND 

By  F.  Debenham,  B.A.,  B.Sc,  Assistant  Geologist  to  the 

Expedition 

It  is  now  nearly  fifteen  years  since  the  first  landing  was  made  on 
the  mainland  of  South  Victoria  Land,  since  which  time  four  sci- 
entific expeditions  have  visited  it  and  returned  with  geological 
information.  This  has  been,  or  is  being,  published  in  the  form 
of  reports  of  a  more  or  less  technical  character.  Therefore  it 
seems  advisable  that  an  attempt  should  be  made  to  condense  this 
information  into  a  popular  narrative  of  what  actual  changes  that 
area  has  undergone  in  past  time,  so  far  as  they  are  known. 

The  tale  must  necessarily  be  incomplete,  for  the  difficulties 
confronting  geological  investigation  in  those  regions  are  natu- 
rally considerable,  but  enough  has  been  done  to  warrant  a  pre- 
liminary interpretation  of  the  known  facts. 

South  Victoria  Land  at  the  present  day  is  marked  on  the  map 
as  a  strip  of  coast  running  in  a  southerly  direction  from  Cape 
Adare  (Lat.  710)  and  merging  into  King  Edward  VII  Plateau 
in  the  region  of  the  Beardmore  Glacier  (Lat.  83°-85°).  As  ap- 
pears in  the  physiographic  account,  it  consists  for  the  most  part 
of  a  high  level  plateau  terminated  along  the  coast  by  steep  escarp- 
ments, more  or  less  indented  by  the  action  of  huge  overflow  gla- 
ciers. It  includes  several  groups  of  volcanic  islands,  the  chief 
of  which  is  the  Ross  Archipelago  (Lat.  77°-79°).  But  in  this 
narrative  we  shall  include  the  Ross  Sea  and  the  Great  Ice  Barrier 
in  the  region,  as  inseparably  bound  up  with  Victoria  Land  in  its 
history. 

The  oldest  rocks  met  with  in  South  Victoria  Land,  forming 
its  foundation,  or  '  shield,'  consist  of  gneisses,  schists,  quartzites, 
and  crystalline  limestones,  much  altered  and  folded  by  later  earth- 
movements.  On  account  of  this  alteration,  much  of  their  story 
is  hidden  from  us,  but  we  may  compare  them  in  age  with  the 


296  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

rocks  of  Western  Australia,  or  Eastern  Canada — that  is,  they 
are  of  pre-Cambrian  age.  They  were  laid  down  for  the  most 
part  by  the  agency  of  water,  the  schists  and  limestones  being  clays 
and  chalks  when  they  were  formed.  The  sea-bottom  on  which 
these  deposits  collected  was  subject  to  continual  up-and-down 
movements,  changing  the  character  of  the  deposit,  for  we  find 
in  rapid  succession  and  in  thin  layers  schists  which  were  fine  muds, 
next  to  quartzites  which  were  sandbeds,  and  marbles  which  were 
either  deep-water  chalk  deposits  or  shallow  clear-water  coral 
reefs. 

On  account  of  the  complex  folding  of  these  beds,  as  well  as 
the  difficulty  of  obtaining  a  measurable  section,  we  are  unable 
to  make  any  definite  statement  as  to  their  thickness,  but  they  can- 
not have  been  less  than  15,000  to  20,000  feet.  But  figures  are 
of  little  value,  since  there  is  no  method  of  ascertaining  what  thick- 
ness of  strata  has  since  been  denuded  from  the  surface.  The 
folding  and  heating  of  the  rocks  has  since  quite  destroyed  all 
evidence  of  the  animal  or  vegetable  life  of  that  time,  though 
numbers  of  small  graphite  particles,  found  in  the  crystalline  lime- 
stones, may  be  the  remnants  of  carbonaceous  growth  in  the  an- 
cient coral  reef. 

Our  earliest  view,  therefore,  of  the  region  is  that  of  a  sea 
bordered  by  land  long  since  used  up  in  forming  these  deposits 
of  mud,  sand,  and  limestone.  The  gneisses  were  in  some  cases 
huge  intrusions  of  granite  connected  with  the  up-and-down  move- 
ments referred  to,  and  in  other  cases  conglomerates,  formed 
close  to  the  coast-line  by  waves  or  rivers.  It  is  probable  that 
there  was  life  of  the  lower  forms  in  these  seas,  their  skeletons 
being  now  altered  beyond  all  recognition. 

Between  the  deposition  of  the  crystalline  schists  and  the 
next  succeeding  strata  there  is  a  vast  gap,  yet  the  mere  existence 
of  a  gap  in  the  geological  record  means  something,  and  we  may 
interpret  it  as  marking  a  period  of  uplift  in  that  area,  so  that  it 
was  dry  land,  and  instead  of  receiving  further  deposits,  became 
the  source  of  deposits  laid  down  in  neighbouring  seas.  In  the 
vast  period  of  time  that  this  gap  represents,  most  of  the  altera- 
tion and  folding  of  these  rocks  took  place,  for  the  later  strata 
are  comparatively  undisturbed.  The  mechanics  of  these  huge 
earth-movements  are  hidden  from  us,  but  they  partook  of  the 
character  of  a  shrinkage,  and  the  strata  were  folded  and  plicated 


CAMBRIAN    STRATA  297 

into  only  a  fraction  of  their  former  horizontal  extent.  Further, 
the  present  directions  of  these  folds  tell  us  that  the  pressure  came 
in  a  direction  parallel  to  the  Equator,  the  axes  of  the  folds  being 
nearly  on  a  north  and  south  line.  However,  with  the  opening  of 
Cambrian  times — a  well-marked  period  in  the  earth's  later  his- 
tory— the  southern  portion  of  our  area  was  again  below  the  sea, 
for  in  the  Beardmore  region  we  find  beds  of  black  limestone  con- 
taining fossils  of  corals  and  of  a  primitive  sponge-coral  called 
Archasocyathus.  The  northern  portion  of  Victoria  Land  was 
still  probably  dry  land.  The  limestone  is  of  unknown  thickness, 
but  its  character  tells  us  something.  From  its  purity  we  can  argue 
a  clear  though  comparatively  shallow  sea,  while  from  a  number 
of  limestone  breccias  found,  we  know  that  after  consolidation  it 
was  broken  up  in  places  by  earth-movements,  or  even  volcanic 
eruptions,  and  afterwards  re-cemented  again.  But  after  this 
period  of  deposition  the  land  again  emerged  from  the  sea,  and 
no  legible  record  is  found  until  much  later.  A  record  of  a  some- 
what illegible  kind  exists  in  a  comprehensive  series  of  granites 
which  occur  in  profusion  along  the  whole  of  the  present  coast- 
line. These  are  of  infinite  variety,  and  probably  belong  to  many 
ages,  but  the  majority  seem  to  have  been  intruded  after  the 
Cambrian  limestone  and  before  the  next  succeeding  strata.  They 
were  doubtless  connected  with  the  uplift  of  the  whole  region. 
In  their  intrusion  through  the  pre-Cambrian  schists  they  tore 
away  and  even  assimilated  huge  blocks  of  schist  and  gneiss,  which 
exist  to-day  as  enclosures  in  the  granite. 

At  the  end  of  Palaeozoic,  or  beginning  of  Mesozoic  times — 
that  is,  somewhat  later  than  when  the  great  coal-measures  of 
England  were  being  formed — the  whole  of  the  Victoria  Land 
region  became  an  area  of  deposition  of  a  very  interesting  kind. 
For  belonging  to  this  period  we  find  a  very  well-marked  series 
of  rocks,  named  by  Mr.  Ferrar  of  the  Discovery  Expedition  the 
Beacon  Sandstone. 

In  the  district  visited  by  him,  the  Royal  Society  Range,  the 
series  is  composed  mainly  of  a  dense  sandstone  with  thin  beds 
of  shale,  and  is  at  least  2000  ft.  thick.  Farther  to  the  north  the 
series  is  represented  by  a  similar  sandstone,  but  associated  with 
beds  of  coral,  shale,  and  limestone.  In  the  Beardmore  district 
it  appears  as  limestone,  calcareous  sandstone,  beds  of  coal,  and 
shale.     There  can  be  little  doubt  that  these  all  represent  de- 


298  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION 

posits  of  approximately  the  same  period  under  slightly  varying 
conditions. 

In  the  Royal  Society  Range  (Lat.  78°~79°)  the  sandstone 
itself  tells  us  a  good  deal.  The  grains  of  sand  are  very  well 
rounded,  as  though  windworn,  there  is  much  false  bedding,  the 
shale  bands  are  thin,  and  there  are  remains  of  fresh-water  plants 
in  these  bands.  From  those  facts  we  can  postulate  a  low-lying 
area  with  sand-dunes  or  desert  sand  in  the  neighbourhood,  which 
was  collected  and  redeposited,  probably  by  water.  A  semi-arid 
climate  prevented  any  great  amount  of  animal  or  vegetable  life, 
for  there  are  no  fossils  in  the  sandstone.  There  are,  however, 
worm-markings,  ripple-marks,  and  the ,  casts  of  sun-cracks,  all 
of  which  mean  conditions  such  as  now  obtain  in  parts  of  the 
Gobi  Desert.  As  far  as  is  known,  sea-water  had  no  part  in  this 
great  series  of  deposits.  Yet  the  climate  varied  according  to 
both  place  and  time,  for  in  the  Beardmore  district  there  are  many 
coal  beds  and  thick  shale  deposits,  marking  probably  a  humid 
climate  and  a  marshy  topography.  These  conditions  were  re- 
peated in  a  smaller  degree  in  the  Granite  Harbour  district  and 
to  the  north.  Throughout  the  whole  area  there  must  have  been 
rapid,  if  not  large,  rivers,  for  the  sandstone  in  places  contains 
small  pockets  and  bands  of  coarse  conglomerate— a  sign  either 
of  coastal  sea-action  or  of  rapid  «rivers. 

For  this  period,  therefore,  we  may  not  be  far  wrong  if  we 
imagine  a  land  somewhat  approaching  in  conditions  the  Southern 
Sahara  or  the  outskirts  of  the  Gobi  Desert.  Too  much  emphasis 
must  not  be  laid  upon  its  desert  character,  however,  for  our  only 
evidence  for  that  is  the  wind-blown  appearance  of  the  sandgrains, 
and  the  absence  of  fossils  in  the  sandstone  itself.  The  same 
conditions  probably  held  over  what  is  now  the  Ross  Sea  and  the 
Great  Ice-Barrier,  these  being  formed  at  a  much  later  period. 
The  Beacon  Sandstone  series  is  the  most  important  yet  found  in 
that  quadrant  of  the  Antarctic,  for  it  is  not  only  the  latest  sedi- 
mentary deposit  of  any  magnitude,  but  it  undoubtedly  has  locked 
up  in  it  great  stores  of  fossil  evidence  which  have  as  yet  hardly 
been  touched  by  geologists. 

In  the  absence  of  later  sedimentary  deposits,  the  more  recent 
history  of  Victoria  Land  is  somewhat  hypothetical,  but  one  very 
definite  period  stands  out,  marked  by  a  geological  phenomenon 
for  which  there  are  few  analogies  to  be  found  in  the  world. 


THE    GREAT    FAULTS  299 

Perhaps  the  most  characteristic  feature  of  the  whole  of  Victoria 
Land  is  the  existence  in  practically  all  parts  yet  visited  of  a  line  of 
dark  level-bedded  rock,  which  stands  out  on  cliff  faces,  produces 
pinnacled  mountains,  and  generally  dominates  the  topography. 
This  is  caused  by  intrusions  of  dolerite  in  the  form  of  a  sill,  which 
from  the  district  of  its  first  description  may  be  called  the 
McMurdo  Sill.  From  Lat.  71  °  down  to  Lat.  850,  and  probably 
beyond,  this  dolerite  is  found,  varying  only  slightly  in  charac- 
ter, and  precisely  similar  in  mode  of  occurrence.  In  places  it 
occurs  as  one  thick  sill,  nearly  always  columnar  in  form,  up  to 
1500  feet  in  thickness,  in  others  it  splits  into  two  or  more  sills 
of  smaller  size.  In  general  it  has  intercalated  itself  between  the 
strata  of  the  Beacon  Sandstone,  but  in  some  cases  it  has  formed 
a  sill  through  granite.  In  one  particular  district,  that  of  the 
Ferrar  Glacier,  it  forms  a  sill  of  300  feet  almost  level-bedded, 
dividing  two  very  different  types  of  granite.  Its  intrusion  was 
for  the  most  part  quiet,  and  has  left  little  effect,  beyond  a  baking 
of  the  strata  in  its  immediate  vicinity.  In  places,  however,  it 
was  evidently  more  violent,  for  huge  blocks  of  granite  or  Bea- 
con Sandstone  are  found  in  it,  torn  from  their  parent  masses. 
The  intrusion  of  these  sills  of  molten  rock  probably  raised  the 
whole  area  to  some  extent,  and  prevented  any  further  deposits. 
The  true  boundaries  of  the  area  intruded  by  the  McMurdo  Sill 
have  not  yet  been  located,  but  it  can  hardly  be  less  than  the 
size  of  the  British  Isles,  and  is  probably  much  greater. 

There  is  one  more  marked  period  in  the  history  of  South 
Victoria  Land.  Probably  about  the  middle  of  Tertiary  times 
that  part  of  the  crust  was  subjected  to  further  shrinkage  stress 
of  an  even  kind,  which  ultimately  resulted  in  a  series  of 
great  breaks  or  faults  along  the  present  coast-line.  On  the 
upthrow  side  of  the  fault  the  land  was  slowly  raised  into  the 
present  plateau,  while  on  the  downthrow  side  the  land  was  de- 
pressed below  sea-level,  and  now  forms  the  Ross  Sea  and  the 
sea-bottom  below  the  Great  Ice  Barrier.  Simultaneously  with, 
and  probably  as  an  effect  of  this  faulting,  there  occurred  a  great 
outburst  of  volcanic  energy  along  the  line  of  break.  At  many 
points  volcanoes  were  formed,  the  chief  centres  being  the  Ross 
Archipelago,  the  Cape  Adare  Peninsula,  and  the  Balleny  Islands. 
This  outburst  is  now  just  dying  out,  only  two  volcanoes  being 
still  active,  Mt.  Erebus  on  Ross  Island,  and  Sturge  Island  in  the 


300  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

Balleny  Group.  No  recent  deposits  having  been  found,  the  later 
pages  of  the  history  of  this  area  must  come  from  its  physiog- 
raphy, and  cannot  be  treated  of  here. 

For  the  work  upon  which  this  history  is  founded  our  thanks 
are  due  to  the  geologists  of  the  various  Antarctic  expeditions, 
chiefly  Mr.  H.  T.  Ferrar,  of  the  National  Antarctic  Expedition, 
and  Professor  T.  W.  Edgeworth  David  and  Mr.  R.  E.  Priestley, 
of  the  British  Antarctic  Expedition,  1907-9.  The  35  lbs.  of 
specimens  brought  back  by  the  Polar  Party  from  Mt.  Buckley 
contain  impressions  of  fossil  plants  of  late  Palaeozoic  age,  some 
of  which  a  cursory  inspection  identifies  as  occurring  in  other 
parts  of  the  world.  When  fully  examined,  they  will  assuredly 
prove  to  be  of  the  highest  geological  importance. 


SUMMARY    OF   GEOLOGICAL   JOURNEYS 

By   F.   Debenham,   B.A.,    B.Sc,   Assistant  Geologist  to   the 

Expedition 

Owing  to  the  early  publication  of  this  book  before  any  of  the 
material  brought  back  has  been  examined,  it  is  difficult  to  state 
the  exact  nature  or  importance  of  the  geological  results  of  the 
Expedition. 

A  summary  of  the  work  done  will  perhaps  to  some  extent 
indicate  its  scope. 

Of  the  three  geologists  accompanying  the  Expedition  two 
were  with  the  main  party  on  Ross  Island,  Mr.  T.  Griffith  Taylor 
and  Mr.  Frank  Debenham.  A  third,  Mr.  Raymond  E.  Priestley, 
was  with  the  Northern  Party,  stationed  the  first  year  at  Cape 
Adare,  the  second  in  the  Mt.  Nansen  region. 

It  had  been  among  Captain  Scott's  original  plans  to  maintain 
a  geological  party  in  the  field  during  each  sledging  season,  and 
this  was  carried  out  until  the  third  season,  when  the  Search  Party 
took  all  available  men. 

The  special  geological  journeys  from  the  main  base  at  Cape 
Evans  were  as  follows : 

In  the  autumn  of  191 1  a  party  of  four,  under  Mr.  Taylor, 
spent  six  weeks  in  the  foothills  of  the  Royal  Society  Range,  ex- 
amining and  surveying  about  eighty  miles  of  coast  line,  including 
Dry  Valley  and  the  Ferrar  and  Koettlitz  glaciers.  Mr.  C.  S. 
Wright  accompanied  this  party  and  studied  ice  phenomena  under 
the  most  typical  conditions. 

The  next  summer  another  geological  party  under  Mr.  Taylor 
spent  three  months  on  the  coast  to  the  north  of  McMurdo  Sound, 
making  their  base  at  Granite  Harbour.  During  this,  probably 
the  most  comprehensive  geological  journey  yet  made  in  the 
South,  a  complete  detailed  survey  of  the  coast  and  the  hinterland 
was  made  both  by  theodolite  and  plane-table. 

The  Mackay  Glacier  was  ascended  almost  to  its  outfall  from 
the  plateau,  and  fossils  associated  with  coal  beds  were  found. 


302  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

A  complete  physiographic  study  of  the  region  was  made  by  Mr. 
Taylor  and  some  important  measurements  of  glacier  movement 
taken. 

At  the  same  time  geological  collections  were  being  made 
on  the  Beardmore  Glacier  by  various  parties.  The  notes  made 
by  Dr.  Wilson  and  the  specimens  collected  by  him  and  by  Lieu- 
tenant Bowers  are  perhaps  the  most  important  of  all  the  geo- 
logical results. 

The  plant  fossils  collected  by  this  party  are  the  best  preserved 
of  any  yet  found  in  this  quadrant  of  the  Antarctic  and  are  of 
the  character  best  suited  to  settle  a  long-standing  controversy  be- 
tween geologists  as  to  the  nature  of  the  former  union  between 
Antarctica  and  Australasia. 

In  December  of  191 2  a  party  of  six  under  Mr.  Priestley  as- 
cended Mt.  Erebus  by  a  new  route  and  spent  a  fortnight  on  the 
upper  slopes  collecting  and  surveying.  The  positions  of  the  for- 
mer craters  or  calderas  and  of  the  fumerole  areas  were  care- 
fully mapped  and  much  of  the  former  history  of  the  volcano 
ascertained. 

In  the  Northern  Party,  stationed  at  Cape  Adare  for  the  first 
season,  a  journey  chiefly  geographical  and  geological  was  made 
along  the  coastline  to  the  west.  Owing  to  unfavourable  ice-con- 
ditions the  party  was  not  able  to  go  very  far,  but  Mr.  Priestley 
was  able  to  make  a  comprehensive  collection  of  the  slates  and 
schists  of  the  region,  supplemented  in  the  summer  by  the  recent 
lavas  of  Cape  Adare  itself. 

In  the  succeeding  year,  being  landed  by  the  ship  at  Evans 
Coves,  the  same  party  made  a  journey  into  entirely  new  country 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  Mt.  Melbourne  and  obtained  further 
fossil  evidence  from  the  great  Beacon  Sandstone  Series. 

Throughout  his  journeys  Mr.  Priestley  made  a  special  study 
of  local  ice  conditions  which  together  with  Mr.  Wright's  work 
with  the  main  party  will  furnish  a  very  complete  report  on  ice 
phenomena  in  the  Antarctic. 

From  this  summary  it  will  be  seen  that  the  geological  work 
of  the  Expedition  was  particularly  comprehensive  and  was  one 
of  the  chief  items  in  the  scientific  syllabus  of  the  Expedition. 
The  mass  of  material  brought  back  will  be  worked  up  and  pub- 
lished in  a  special  Geological  Report. 


NOTES    ON    ICE    PHYSICS 

By  Charles  S.  Wright,  B.A. 

These  notes  deal  with  a  very  few  only  of  the  subdivisions  falling 
under  the  heading  '  Ice  Physics  '  and  are  intended  merely  to  give 
a  popular  survey  of  this  interesting  and  by  no  means  unimportant 
branch  of  scientific  work. 

As  a  practically  new  field  of  research,  in  the  nature  of  things 
the  work  was  largely  observational  in  character,  and  until  all 
the  data  are  fully  worked  out  all  conclusions  must  be  considered 
provisional  and  incomplete. 

A  consideration  of  the  important  place  in  the  scheme  of  things 
occupied  by  the  molecule  known  as  H20  would  certainly  lead  one 
to  give  it  the  nickname  of  '  the  mighty  molecule.' 

The  climates  of  the  earth  are  almost  entirely  controlled  by 
water  in  one  of  its  three  forms.  In  the  Northern  Hemisphere 
we  have  long  realised  the  effect  of  the  Gulf  Stream  on  our  own 
lands;  what  then  is  the  effect  on  the  Southern  Hemisphere  of  a 
stream  of  huge  icebergs  ever  breaking  off  from  the  Antarctic 
Continent  and  drifting  northwards  into  low  latitudes?  Be  it 
remembered  that  an  iceberg  at  melting  point  is  several  times  as 
efficient  a  reservoir  of  cold  as  an  equal  volume  of  water  at  the 
same  temperature. 

Consider  only  the  simple  case  of  an  ocean  current  washing 
a  natural  ice  barrier  stretched  across  a  strait  and  gradually  eat- 
ing its  way  through.  How  far  reaching  will  be  the  effect  when 
the  barrier  is  down !  The  whole  history  of  the  world  might 
easily  be  changed  by  some  such  simple  catastrophe. 

Sea  Ice 

Possibly  foremost  among  the  different  forms  of  ice  to  be 
studied  was  that  of  sea  ice — being  fast  ice  *  formed  in  autumn 
on  the  surface  of  the  sea  by  the  action  of  the  cold  air  above  it. 

*  Ice  not  in  movement. 


304  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

The  process  of  freezing  is  a  very  interesting  one  to  watch  in  cold, 
calm  weather.  As  the  temperature  falls  the  sea  becomes  covered 
with  small  scale-like  plate  crystals  up  to  one  inch  across  of  a  deli- 
cate fern-like  structure.  They  generally  float  flat  upon  the  sur- 
face, but  many  are  imprisoned  in  an  approximately  vertical  posi- 
tion. After  the  surface  becomes  covered,  the  ice  then  grows  in 
the  ordinary  way  by  accretion  from  below.  In  the  initial  stages, 
when  the  ice  is  only  an  inch  in  thickness,  the  felt-like  mass  on  the 
surface  has  little  rigidity,  and  even  up  to  3  inches  thick  moves 
freely  up  and  down  under  the  influence  of  a  swell  without  losing 
its  coherence  in  any  way. 

Sea  ice  is  quite  different  in  its  properties  from  the  ice  formed 
on  a  pond  or  lake  of  fresh  water,  owing  to  the  fact  that  some  of 
the  salt  in  solution  in  sea  water  is  always  imprisoned  between 
the  individual  crystals  in  the  sea  ice.  This  imprisoned  salt  be- 
tween the  crystals  does  not  freeze  in  contact  with  ice  till  a  fairly 
low  temperature  is  reached,  and  consequently  sea  ice  when  new 
and  thin  is  never  hard  and  rigid  like  fresh  water  ice.  As  a  result 
ice  even  four  or  more  inches  thick  is  for  sledging  by  no  means 
safe,  whereas  the  same  thickness  of  fresh  ice  would  be  sufficient 
to  support  a  regiment  of  soldiers. 

In  cold  clear  weather  about  thirty-six  hours  is  required  to 
form  ice  of  this  thickness,  which  is  then  of  a  dark  slaty  colour, 
but  somewhat  mottled  owing  to  differences  in  transparency  of  the 
differently  oriented  crystals. 

If  the  temperature  of  the  air  is  below  zero  Fahrenheit,  as 
the  ice  forms  and  while  it  is  still  only  a  couple  of  inches  thick, 
the  extruded  salt  on  the  surface  commences  to  gather  moisture 
from  the  air  and  grows  upwards  in  beautifully  shaped  crystals, 
forming  rosettes  in  almost  infinite  variety  of  structure,  depending 
chiefly  upon  the  conditions  of  temperature  and  humidity  in  the  air 
above. 

These  *  ice  flowers  '  have  but  a  fleeting  existence,  however, 
for  should  the  air  temperature  rise  much  above  the  temperature 
at  which  they  were  formed  they  melt  again  and  collapse.  Since 
the  cryohydric  temperature  of  common  salt  and  water  is  zero 
Fahrenheit,  it  follows  at  once  that  no  ice  flowers  can  live  above 
zero  temperature  (o°  F.). 

In  the  early  part  of  the  winter  all  additions  to  the  thickness 
of  the  sea  ice  are  due  to  conduction  by  the  cold  air  above,  but 


ICE    FOOT  305 

there  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  later  in  the  winter  the  sea 
ice  grows  to  its  great  thickness  of  8  and  9  feet  largely  by  the 
deposition  of  frazil  crystals  from  below. 

There  is  very  little  growth  from  above  due  to  deposition  of 
snow. 

After  the  first  winter,  when  the  Sound  was  completely  frozen 
over,  the  ice  was  seen  on  the  return  of  the  sun  to  be  buckled  in 
the  form  of  low  waves  two  or  three  inches  high  and  about  150 
feet  apart  from  crest  to  crest.  This  phenomenon  was  due  evi- 
dently to  the  dilatation  of  the  ice  on  rising  temperatures  and  was 
remarkable  by  reason  that  in  each  hollow  a  tiny  crack  was  visible 
and  remained  open  until  the  disappearance  of  the  ice — Nature's 
provision  for  helping  the  break-up  of  the  sea  ice  after  a  severe 
winter.  In  mild  winters  when  the  outer  Sound  is  kept  free  of 
ice  no  such  cracks  or  waves  appear. 

Ice  Foot 

During  the  autumn,  while  the  sea  is  as  yet  open  and  the  tem- 
perature low,  the  whole  shore  line  becomes  covered  with  a  coat- 
ing of  frozen  spray,  which  on  account  of  its  saline  constituents 
remains  wet  and  sticky  at  even  comparatively  low  temperatures, 
and  provides  pendant  masses  in  an  infinite  variety  of  form,  from 
a  very  stubby  icicle  to  the  so-called  foot-stalactites,  due  to  con- 
stant accretion  of  snow  drifting  from  one  direction  only.  About 
the  same  time  there  is  growing  on  all  shallow  shores  a  low  plat- 
form a  few  feet  above  the  surface  of  mean  sea  level.  This 
growth  is  due  partly  to  drifted  snow  consolidated  by  spray,  partly 
to  tidal  action,  and  partly  to  growth  direct  from  the  waves  and 
sea. 

This  ice  foot  later  on  becomes  frozen  clear  to  the  bottom 
on  shallow  shores  and  remains  fixed  to  the  land  during  the  win- 
ter, being  separated  by  the  working  tide  crack  from  the  fast  sea 
ice  beyond. 

Pack  Ice 

Pack  ice,  in  distinction  to  fast  ice,  is  not  bound  to  the  shore, 
but  moves  under  the  influence  of  local  currents  and  wind.  In  the 
Antarctic,  pack  ice  is  evidently  seldom  formed  at  sea  and  largely 
consists  of  fast  ice  which  has  been  broken  away  and  carried  off 

VOL.  11 — 20 


306  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION 

to  sea  by  blizzards  or  some  such  transporting  agent.  The  pack 
extends  in  normal  years  in  December  from  about  66°  to  71  °  S. 
Lat.,  a  distance  of  300  miles  from  north  to  south,  and  at  times 
evidently  fills  the  whole  width  of  the  Ross  Sea. 

Pack  may  be  heavy  or  light,  closed  or  open — the  latter  condi- 
tions being  entirely  dependent  on  local  winds  and  currents.  Thus 
heavy  pack  if  open  may  offer  no  insuperable  bar  to  navigation, 
whereas  in  closed  pack,  whether  heavy  or  light,  little  progress 
can  be  made  by  ships.  Heavy  pack  is  usually  associated  with 
hummocks  or  pressure  ridges  rising  to  a  height  of  four  or  five 
feet  above  the  general  level  of  the  floe.  These  hummocks  and 
pressure  ridges  are  called  upon  to  furnish  ice  for  cooking  and 
other  purposes  in  the  pack,  being  comparatively  free  from  salt, 
owing,  as  mentioned  previously,  to  the  fact  that  the  salt  in  the 
ice  goes  into  solution  and  drains  away,  whenever  the  temperature 
rises  above  zero. 

Towards  the  end  of  February  the  Ross  Sea  becomes  com- 
paratively free  of  pack  and  offers  no  bar  to  navigation. 

Snow 

Precipitation  from  the  atmosphere  occurred  always  in  the 
form  of  snow  in  these  regions  bordering  on  the  continent;  some- 
times, when  the  temperature  was  high,  in  the  form  of  delicate  six- 
rayed  stars,  or  at  lower  temperatures  in  the  form  of  hexagonal 
plates,  little  granular  balls,  or  at  still  lower  temperatures  fine 
needle-shaped  forms. 

Not  long,  however,  do  they  keep  this  form  after  falling. 
Immediately  '  the  mighty  molecule  '  starts  its  work,  some  crystals 
grow  at  the  expense  of  others,  the  whole  grows  more  compact, 
becomes  hard,  and  while  still  containing  much  air  is  white  and 
called  neve.  Later  it  completes  its  change  by  expelling  the  air 
and  becomes  the  well-known  blue  ice. 

During  the  summer  one  can  see  the  whole  transformation 
taking  place  before  one's  eyes  in  the  course  of  a  few  days. 

Crystal  Forms 

Not  only  in  the  form  of  snow,  however,  do  these  crystal  forms 
occur.  In  crevasses,  on  the  roof  of  the  stables,  on  windows,  and 
so  on,  countless  varied  forms  are  to  be  seen,  each  single  form 


GLACIERS 


307 


corresponding  to  a  particular  temperature,  humidity,  change  of 
temperature,  and  change  of  humidity.  Every  slight  lowering  of 
temperature  deposits  its  appropriate  form  and  quantity  of  ice 
crystals  on  every  object  exposed  to  these  conditions. 

Thus  on  ice  ponds  or  other  masses  of  ice,  at  times  the  crystals 
are  so  deposited  as  to  outline  the  form  of  the  massive  crystals  in 
the  ice — at  times  so  as  to  show  the  orientation  of  the  crystals  on 
the  surface. 

Probably  the  most  beautiful  form  of  crystal,  and  certainly 
the  most  distinctive  one,  was  to  be  found  in  huge  masses  in  all 
crevasses.  Single  crystals  measured  up  to  2  inches  across,  and 
were  built  in  the  form  of  hollow  pyramids. 

Glaciers 

It  is  however  when  in  the  form  of  glaciers  that  one  appreci- 
ates to  the  full  the  power  of  '  the  mighty  molecule  ' :  huge  val- 
leys, 5,  10,  20,  30,  even  50  miles  wide,  filled  with  moving  ice, 
cut  by  this  ice  from  the  solid  rock  to  a  depth  of  thousands  of  feet; 
— huge  streams  of  ice  moving  by  virtue  of  their  own  enormous 
weight  at  a  rate  of  30  feet  a  year  even  in  the  most  dormant 
glaciers. 

Hundreds  of  glaciers  representing  every  type  are  to  be  found 
along  the  stretch  of  shore  from  Cape  Adare  to  the  Beardmore 
Glacier;  some,  like  the  Ferrar  and  Beardmore  glaciers,  accom- 
modating the  outflow  from  the  great  ice  plateau  9000  to  11,000 
feet  high,  others  flowing  from  local  neve  fields,  and  others  little 
more  than  consolidated  snow-drifts. 

Owing  to  the  fact  that  the  '  snow-line  '  is  at  sea  level,  a  very 
large  proportion  of  the  glaciers  terminate  in  the  sea  and  dis- 
charge bergs  from  their  seaward  faces  as  do  many  Greenland 
glaciers.  More  than  this,  however,  the  Antarctic  glaciers,  in- 
stead of  coming  to  an  end  where  they  rest  on  the  sea  bottom, 
often  preserve  their  entities  as  glaciers  or  streams  of  ice  while 
projecting  many  miles  into  the  open  sea.  Examples  of  this  type 
are  furnished  by  '  Glacier  Tongue  '  between  Winter  Quarters 
and  Hut  Point,  and  by  the  Nordenskiold  and  Drygalski  ice 
tongues  farther  north.  This  latter  pushes  its  way  into  the 
sea  a  distance  of  about  thirty  miles  and  has  a  volume,  on  a  rough 
calculation,  of  fifty  thousand  million  cubic  yards. 


308  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION 

Probably  the  most  interesting  of  the  data  collected  on  gla- 
ciers were  connected  with  their  interior  structure,  the  size  of  the 
individual  crystals,  the  amount  of  the  imprisoned  air  in  the  form 
of  air  bubbles,  the  occurrence  of  silt  bands  and  of  bands  of  clear 
blue  ice  in  horizontal  layers,  and  the  occurrence  and  distribution 
of  crevasses,  and  of  pressure  ridges  in  the  glacier.  This  field, 
however,  is  much  too  large  to  enter  upon  in  this  place. 

The  Barrier 

By  far  the  most  unique  feature  of  the  Antarctic  is  the  occur- 
rence of  huge  masses  of  floating  ice,  such  as  the  Great  Ross 
Barrier,  which  fills  up  the  whole  of  the  narrow  end  of  the  Ross 
Sea.  This  great  sheet  of  floating  ice  has  an  average  depth  of 
probably  600  feet  and  presents  an  unbroken  front  to  the  sea 
400  geographical  miles  in  length  with  a  depth  from  back  to  front 
of  over  300  miles.  The  surface  of  the  Barrier  is  comparatively 
level,  and  offers  little  obstruction  to  sledging.  The  yearly  snow- 
fall from  observations  by  Captain  Scott  in  the  Discovery  Expe- 
dition and  from  Sir  Ernest  Shackleton's  work  amounts  to  about 
eighteen  inches  of  consolidated  snow  of  density  about  y2.  From 
the  same  authorities  we  know  that  the  yearly  motion  is  in  an 
east-north-easterly  direction  (close  to  Minna  Bluff)  at  the  rate 
of  about  500  yards  a  year. 

We  have  moreover  data  to  show  that  no  great  change  in  the 
position  of  the  seaward  edge  of  the  Barrier  has  taken  place  since 
the  Discovery  Expedition  (in  1901-04).  Thus  the  Barrier  may 
be  considered  for  purposes  of  calculation  as  remaining  in  statu 
quo  by  virtue  of  the  discharge  of  icebergs  from  its  seaward  face. 

If  this  is  so,  we  see  that  the  volume  of  ice  due  to  deposition, 
18/2  x  y12  x  %  x  400  x  2000  x  300  x  2000  =  12  x  1010  cubic 
yards  (taking  width  as  400  miles,  and  length  300),  should  be 
converted  into  a  strip  of  ice  on  the  seaward  side  400  miles  long, 
500  yards  wide,  and  600  feet  deep  =  8  x  jo10  cubic  yards. 

This  agreement  of  observation  is  a  remarkably  close  one  and 
proves  that  our  fundamental  statement  is  very  close  to  the  truth. 

It  should  here  be  pointed  out  that  in  the  above  calculation  no 
allowance  has  been  made  for  the  effect  of  glaciers  pushing  the 
Barrier  before  them  and  so  adding  to  the  apparent  motion. 
That  is,  it  is  assumed  the  Barrier  moves  under  its  own  weight 


ICEBERGS  309 

alone.  Luckily  the  Barrier  may  be  subjected  to  further  calcula- 
tion, being  in  the  happy  position  of  a  mass  of  ice  resting  on  a 
frictionless  plane  at  freezing-point.  Thus  with  certain  assump- 
tions regarding  the  rather  uncertain  coefficient  of  viscosity  of  ice 
and  a  slight  excursion  into  integral  calculus,  we  can  arrive  at  the 
conclusion  that  the  Barrier  under  its  own  weight  would  each 
year  push  out  a  distance  of  from  100  to  500  yards, — a  distance 
at  least  of  the  same  order  of  magnitude  as  that  found  by 
observation. 

From  this  we  see  we  are  probably  justified  in  neglecting  the 
volume  of  ice  added  to  the  Barrier  and  carried  down  by  glaciers 
from  the  plateau  and  may  treat  the  Barrier  as  an  entity  by  itself. 

Consider  now  the  effect  of  such  a  Barrier  in  equilibrium,  en- 
closed on  three  sides  and  exposed  to  a  continuous  snowfall. 
Without  any  further  mathematics  it  is  at  once  clear  that  the 
velocity  of  motion  at  the  seaward  edge  must  be  very  many  times 
faster  than  the  velocity  at  the  shore  farthest  from  the  sea.  The 
tendency  of  a  continuous  snowfall  would  be  therefore  to  accumu- 
late a  much  greater  thickness  of  Barrier  on  the  side  farthest  from 
the  sea.  That  this  is  not  so,  is  shown  by  the  barometric  observa- 
tions of  the  sledging  parties,  which  furnish  convincing  proof  that 
the  Barrier  is  still  afloat  quite  close  to  the  landward  end,  and 
further  that  a  very  good  current  circulation  obtains  under  this 
part,  since  the  single  circumstance  capable  of  preventing  an  accu- 
mulation of  snow,  is  a  corresponding  melting  action,  which  again 
can  only  be  due  to  water  underneath  the  Barrier. 

Icebergs 

It  has  been  noted  that  the  Barrier  and  also  land-glaciers  may 
discharge  ice  into  the  sea  in  the  form  of  bergs.  Since  no  bergs 
were  ever  seen  in  McMurdo  Sound  except  in  the  late  summer 
months  it  may  almost  be  taken  that  the  prime  cause  of  the  calv- 
ing of  bergs  from  the  parent  glacier  is  due  to  the  melting  action 
of  the  warm  sea  water. 

Bergs  met  with  in  the  Antarctic  can  best  be  roughly  divided 
into  barrier  or  tabular  bergs  and  glacier  bergs.  The  tabular  berg 
is  recognised  by  its  flat  tabular  form,  whereas  the  glacier  berg 
seldom  has  such  a  regular  profile  and  often  is  formed  of  deep 
blue  ice  in  contradistinction  to  the  dazzling  whiteness  of  the 


3io  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION 

barrier  berg.  The  tabular  berg  has  a  height  up  to  200  feet  above 
sea  and  at  times  reaches  the  enormous  length  of  21  miles — truly 
a  floating  island.  After  partial  melting  it  usually  becomes 
slightly  tilted  to  one  side,  or  develops  enormous  caverns  due  to 
the  action  of  the  waves.  In  the  final  stages  it  may  overturn  or 
even  disintegrate  and  after  prolonged  exposure  to  the  elements 
is  hardly  distinguishable  from  the  glacier  berg. 

The  general  tendency  of  the  currents  in  the  Ross  Sea  is  to 
carry  these  bergs  northwards  into  the  warmer  water,  so  that  in 
late  summer  the  greatest  accumulation  of  bergs  occurs  at  a  fairly 
low  latitude.  As  a  result  also  of  their  great  heat  capacity  they 
are  not  associated  at  this  time  of  the  year  with  pack  ice  as  they 
are  in  the  early  summer. 

That  the  number  and  distribution  of  these  enormous  reser- 
voirs of  cold  has  a  real  effect  upon  the  climate  of  Australasia  can 
hardly  be  doubted,  and  it  is  therefore  evident  that  a  close  study 
and  analysis  of  the  data  on  this  subject  may  well  give  results  of 
the  very  greatest  value. 


GENERAL   PHYSICS 

[Simpson  and  Wright] 
By  Charles  S.  Wright,  B.A. 

The  field  covered  in  pure  Physics  by  the  Expedition  was  by  no 
means  a  small  one.    It  may  be  conveniently  be  divided  as  follows : 

(a)   Magnetic  observations. 

These  consisted  in  continuous  photographic  records  by  Esch- 
enhagen  magnetographs  of  the  elements  N.S.  (astronomical) 
force,  E.W.  force,  and  vertical  force.  These  instruments  were 
placed  in  a  cave  dug  into  an  ice-drift,  a  couple  of  hundred  feet 
to  the  south-west  of  the  hut  at  Cape  Evans.  This  furnished  the 
highly  desirable  advantage  of  a  constant  temperature  condition, 
important  in  that  the  sensitiveness  of  the  instruments  is  depend- 
ent upon  temperature.  The  light  in  the  cave  was  furnished  by 
a  small  electric  lamp  run  from  accumulators  in  the  hut.  Time 
signals  were  recorded  on  the  trace  every  two  minutes  by  means 
of  a  clock  fitted  with  electric  contacts,  kept  also  in  the  hut  and 
compared  daily  with  the  standard  chronometer. 

The  programme  of  magnetic  work  included  '  quick  runs  '  on 
international  term  days.  '  Quick  runs  '  are  obtained  when  one 
moves  the  photographic  paper  at  a  much  greater  speed  than 
usual,  so  as  to  have  a  more  open  time-scale.  These  were  carried 
out  at  the  same  times  by  all  magnetic  observatories,  in  the  hope 
that  the  comparison  of  traces  would  give  definite  information 
regarding  the  origin  of  magnetic  storms. 

Magnetic  storms,  though  frequent,  are  not  of  hourly  occur- 
rence, and  it  is  a  matter  for  congratulation  that  one  of  our 
largest  storms  (also  recorded  by  Webb's  instruments  with  Maw- 
son)  occurs  during  the  course  of  a  quick  run. 

In  addition  to  almost  complete  traces  furnished  by  the  mag- 
netographs, absolute  observations  were  undertaken  once  a  week 
for  standardisation  of  the  traces,  while  observations  for  sensi- 
tiveness of  the  magnetographs  were  carried  out  once  a  month. 

Observations  of  stars  or  sun,  for  time  signals  and  for  rating 


312  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION 

of  chronometers,  were  made  on  an  average  once  every  fortnight. 
During  the  whole  of  the  second  year  the  rate  of  the  standard 
chronometer  varied  only  from  0-17  second  losing  to  0-25  second 
gaining,  a  very  fine  performance  considering  the  adverse  condi- 
tions it  had  to  contend  against. 

The  complete  hourly  records  of  auroras,  which  have  been 
shown  to  be  connected  with  sun-spot  phenomena  and  with  mag- 
netic storms,  should  when  worked  out  give  data  of  considerable 
value,  especially  when  compared  with  the  data  collected  by  Priest- 
ley on  the  Northern  Party. 

(b)   Atmospheric  electricity. 

(b)    1.  Potential  gradient. 

During  the  whole  of  the  first  year  and  part  of  the  second 
(until  the  almost  continuous  blizzards  made  observations  use- 
less), records  of  the  potential  gradient  of  the  atmosphere  were 
made  in  the  usual  way  by  use  of  the  self-recording  Benndorff 
electrometers.  Owing  to  the  mechanical  difficulties  of  such 
work  in  cold  regions,  recourse  was  had  to  the  lately  discovered 
element  Ionium  as  a  collector  of  the  air  potential,  this  substance 
being  furnished  by  the  great  kindness  of  Prof.  Giesel. 

An  interesting  effect,  noticed  almost  immediately  on  setting 
up  the  apparatus,  was  that  in  high  winds,  even  when  there  was 
only  the  slightest  amount  of  very  low,  drift,  the  collector  became 
charged  to  such  an  extent  that  sparks  %  inch  long  were  continu- 
ously emitted  by  the  charged  system. 

In  order  to  obtain  an  estimate  of  the  mean  absolute  value  of 
the  earth's  electrostatic  field  in  the  Antarctic,  comparison  eye  ob- 
servations were  undertaken  over  the  level  surface  of  the  sea 
ice,  similar  to  those  undertaken  at  Melbourne  for  determination 
of  the  absolute  value  of  the  potential  gradient  over  the  sea.* 
These  observations  gave  for  the  Antarctic  a  mean  value  of  the 
same  order  as  those  obtained  in  other  latitudes  and  over  the  sea. 

(b)    2.  Radioactivity  of  the  air. 

Numerous  observations  on  the  radium  content  of  the  Ant- 
arctic air  were  made  during  the  first  year,  using  the  same  appara- 
tus as  was  used  for  observations  on  sea  air  during  the  voyage  of 
the  Terra  Nova.     As  might  be  expected   (dry  frozen  surfaces 

*  '  Atmospheric   Electricity  over   the  Ocean,'    G.  C.  Simpson  and  C.  S.  Wright, 
Proc.  Roy.  Soc,  A.,  Vol.  85,  191 1. 


ATMOSPHERIC    ELECTRICITY 


3i3 


can  hardly  disengage  any  great  quantity  of  radium  emanation), 
the  variations  in  radium  content  were  not  large,  but  of  the  same 
order  of  magnitude  as  observed  over  the  sea. 

(b)    3.  Natural  ionisation  in  closed  vessels. 

The  paper  before  mentioned  contains  the  results  obtained 
on  the  voyage  of  the  Terra  Nova  from  England  to  New  Zea- 
land, of  which  the  section  on  Natural  Ionisation  may  be  sum- 
marised as  follows. 

(i)  Variations  in  natural  ionisation  are  due  primarily  to 
varying  amounts  of  radioactive  products  in  the  air  (disengaged, 
chiefly  at  least,  from  land  surfaces). 

(ii)  These  radioactive  products  are  too  diffusely  distributed 
in  the  atmosphere  to  have  any  direct  effect  on  the  natural  ionisa- 
tion, and  only  become  operative  when  deposited  in  the  neighbour- 
hood of  the  experimental  station  by  precipitation,  or  by  the 
earth's  electric  field  (potential  gradient). 

(iii)  There  exists  a  minimum  value  to  this  natural  ionisation 
(about  4  ions  per  c.c.  per  sec.)  which  has  not  by  any  method  been 
reduced  in  value.  This  minimum  would  seem  to  be  independent 
of  the  size  or  material  of  the  retaining  vessel,  and  may  therefore 
be  best  ascribed  to  a  spontaneous  breakdown  of  the  enclosed  gas, 
very  similar  to  the  spontaneous  breakdown  of  radioactive 
substances. 

From  the  above  one  can  see  that  in  places  where  the  radium 
content  of  the  air  is  very  small  (as  over  the  sea),  the  variations 
in  natural  ionisation  will  also  be  small.  Further  work  on  the 
minimum  value  in  the  Antarctic  (carried  on  in  an  ice  cave  at  con- 
stant temperature)  gave  a  value  very  slightly  lower  than  that 
found  over  the  sea,  and  showed,  with  a  self-recording  instrument, 
no  variations  greater  than  the  probable  errors  of  observation. 

For  further  details  of  the  above,  and  in  respect  to  measure- 
ments of  the  ionisation  of  the  air,  the  reader  is  referred  to  the 
paper  before  mentioned. 

Samples  of  sea  water  were  also  collected  from  various  depths 
for  radium  analysis,  and  will  be  worked  out  by  Prof.  Joly,  but  the 
results  are  not  yet  available. 

(c)   Pendulum  observations. 

It  will  be  known  to  the  general  reader  that  the  weight  of  any 
substance  as  measured  by  the  pull  of  the  earth  upon  it  is  not  an 


3i4  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

invariable  constant.  Thus  a  piece  of  lead  or  other  substance 
weighed  at  sea  level  on  a  spring  balance  would  be  heavier  at  the 
Pole  than  at  the  Equator  by  about  5  parts  in  1000.  This  differ- 
ence may  be  considered  as  partly  due  to  the  weakening,  as  one 
goes  towards  the  Pole,  of  the  centrifugal  force  of  the  earth's 
rotation,  and  partly  due  to  the  increased  force  of  attraction  by 
virtue  of  the  flattening  of  the  earth  at  the  poles,  and  consequent 
shorter  distance  from  the  centre  of  attraction. 

Dealing  with  such  small  differences  in  value  of  the  gravity 
constant  '  g,'  it  becomes  essential,  if  any  theories  are  to  be  tested, 
that  observations  should  be  carried  out  with  the  most  extreme 
accuracy. 

The  universal  method  of  measuring  '  g '  is  by  noting  the 
time  of  swing  of  a  pendulum,  and  as  absolute  measurements  are 
of  the  utmost  refinement  and  delicacy,  comparative  measurements 
are  nearly  always  undertaken,  and  referred  to  similar  observa- 
tions at  the  standard  station  in  Potsdam. 

The  pendulums  used  were  of  Col.  von  Sterneck's  pattern  and 
are  gilt,  three  in  number,  swinging  from  agate  planes  in  two 
directions  at  right  angles  to  one  another.  The  pendulums  are 
swung  at  atmospheric  temperature  and  pressure,  and  corrections 
are  applied  to  reduce  to  normal. 

The  time  of  swing  is  measured  by  the  method  of  coincidences, 
with  reference  to  a  special  clock  making  an  electric  contact  each 
second.  This  clock  is  used  as  the  standard  and  rated  (if  possi- 
ble) to  yioth  second  in  the  day,  by  observation  of  stars  at 
meridian  transit. 

With  care  the  value  of  '  g '  should  be  accurate,  after  all  cor- 
rections are  applied,  to  one  part  in  a  million,  but  under  the  par- 
ticularly unfavourable  conditions  in  the  Antarctic  it  is  doubtful 
if  a  much  higher  accuracy  than  1  in  250,000  is  obtainable. 

The  difficulties  experienced  with  the  instrument  in  the  Ant- 
arctic, though  apparently  trifling  at  this  distance,  were  very  real 
at  the  time.  For  instance,  observation  on  stars  for  clock  rate 
was  usually  complicated  by  a  temperature  of  -  400  with  a  slight 
wind,  quite  sufficient  to  keep  one  nursing  his  nose,  and  to  be  very 
careful  not  to  put  one's  eye  to  the  telescope  lest  it  freeze  and 
remain  there.  Other  little  troubles,  such  as  the  stopping  of  the 
clock  by  a  bodily  shift  of  the  wall  of  the  hut  upon  which  it  was 
hung,  also  tended  to  reduce  the  accuracy  of  the  observations. 


PENDULUM    OBSERVATIONS  315 

During  the  first  winter  the  pendulum  observations  were  made 
in  a  small  cave  dug  into  an  ice  drift,  but  did  not  prove  at  all 
satisfactory,  partly  owing  to  the  frost-fogging  of  the  lenses  and 
mirrors  during  the  course  of  the  observations  and  partly  owing 
to  the  intense  cold.  There  being  more  space  in  the  hut  during 
the  second  winter,  a  second  series  of  observations  was  under- 
taken inside,  a  huge  kenyte  boulder  being  imported  to  serve  as 
a  solid  base  for  the  instrument.  By  cutting  a  hole  through  the 
floor  of  the  hut  and  freezing  the  boulder  to  the  frozen  ground 
underneath,  a  very  solid  and  rigid  stand  was  formed.  This 
second  series  was  carried  out  in  the  dark  room  (by  courtesy  of 
Debenham),  and  the  coincidences  observed  by  telescope  through 
a  small  window  in  the  wall  in  order  to  reduce  the  temperature 
variation  of  the  pendulums.  The  observations,  though  not  equal 
to  those  obtainable  in  a  fixed  observatory,  are  quite  concordant 
and  should  give  sufficient  data  to  substantiate  definitely  the 
theoretical  formula  at  present  in  general  use. 


METEOROLOGICAL    REPORT 
By  G.  C.  Simpson,  D.Sc. 

Captain  Scott's  great  desire  was  that  good  scientific  work 
should  be  done  on  the  Expedition.  He  therefore  did  everything 
in  his  power  to  help  those  to  whom  he  entrusted  the  work  by 
giving  them  all  possible  facilities  and  large  financial  aid,  and  he 
allowed  me  to  use  all  the  money  subscribed  in  my  native  town 
and  country  for  the  scientific  work  under  my  charge.  In  conse- 
quence no  expedition  has  gone  out  so  well  equipped  with  stores 
and  instruments  for  physical  investigation.  The  following  short 
statement  of  work  done  at  Cape  Evans  will  give  some  idea  of  the 
completeness  of  the  outfit: 

{a)  An  almost  unbroken  record  by  self- registering  instru- 
ments of:  temperature  (two  instruments),  barometric  pressure, 
wind  force  (two  instruments),  wind  direction,  sunshine,  elec- 
trical state  of  the  atmosphere,  and  the  three  elements  of  terres- 
trial magnetism. 

(b)  Regular  observations  of  the  usual  meteorological 
instruments. 

(c)  An  investigation  of  the  upper  air  by  means  of  balloons 
both  with  and  without  instruments,  by  which  knowledge  has  been 
gained  of  the  temperature  and  air  currents  up  to  a  height  of 
over  five  miles. 

(d)  Weekly  absolute  determinations  of  the  magnetic 
elements. 

(e)  Hourly  observations  of  the  aurora  during  the  whole 
period  when  it  was  dark  enough  to  observe. 

(/)    A  close  study  of  the  optics  of  the  atmosphere. 

{g)  Accurate  determination  of  the  value  of  gravity  by  means 
of  pendulums. 

(h)  A  very  thorough  study  of  ice,  as  it  occurs  both  in  the 
air,  and  on  the  ground. 

In  addition  to  the  above  a  valuable  set  of  meteorological  ob- 
servations was  made  at  Cape  Adare. 

It  is  impossible  to  discuss  here,  even  briefly,  the  results  ob- 


TEMPERATURES  317 

tained,  but  it  is  quite  clear  that  many  of  them  are  new  and  un- 
expected. Enough  data  have  been  collected  to  require  many 
years  for  their  adequate  discussion  by  specialists.  A  few  numeri- 
cal results  obtained  during  the  first  year  are  given  in  the  table  at 
the  end  of  this  article. 

Throughout  this  book  there  have  been  constant  references 
to  temperature  and  wind — two  meteorological  factors  which 
have  been  of  vital  importance  to  the  members  of  the  expedition. 
It  appears  therefore  that  it  would  not  be  out  of  place  to  ex- 
amine here  these  two  factors  from  the  scientific  point  of  view 
to  see  what  justification  there  was  for  the  verdict  passed  on  them 
from  purely  physiological  experiences. 


Temperature 

The  mean  temperature  at  Cape  Evans  during  the  first  year  of 
our  stay  was  -  0-4°  F.,  which  compares  with  —  1-3°  F.  found  for 
the  two  years  that  the  Discovery  was  in  the  same  region.  The 
corresponding  temperature  for  a  place  in  the  same  latitude  in 
the  Arctic  is  2-5°  F.,  thus  the  difference  is  not  very  great.  The 
lowest  temperature  recorded  at  Cape  Evans  was  -  500  F.,  which 
is  not  particularly  low,  for  many  well  inhabited  towns  in  Alaska 
and  Sibera  experience  lower  temperatures  every  winter.  The 
real  severity  of  the  Antarctic  climate  is  not  shown  in  its  low 
minimum  temperatures,  but  in  its  low  maximum  temperatures. 
The  July  temperature  at  the  North  Pole  has  been  calculated  to 
be  300  F.,  the  mean  temperature  at  Cape  Evans  during  Decem- 
ber 191 1  and  January  19 12  was  21  °  F.  Thus  the  summer  tem- 
perature at  our  base  station  over  900  miles  from  the  South  Pole 
was  90  F.  below  the  summer  temperature  at  the  North  Pole 
itself.  It  is  interesting  to  compare  the  mean  temperature  through- 
out the  months  of  the  year  at  Cape  Evans  with  that  of  a  station 
in  the  corresponding  latitude  in  the  northern  hemisphere.  The 
comparison  is  made  in  the  table  on  p.  318. 

Thus  during  the  three  summer  months  our  temperature  was 
more  than  150  F.  below  what  would  have  been  experienced  at  a 
similar  latitude  in  the  Arctic.  The  low  temperature  during  the 
summer  in  the  Antarctic  is  one  of  the  outstanding  features  of  its 
climate  and  has  not  yet  received  a  really  satisfactory  explanation. 

As  stated  above,  the  lowest  temperatures  experienced  at  Cape 


3i8 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


Evans  was  -  500  F.,  but  that  was  by  no  means  the  lowest  met 
with  by  members  of  the  Expedition.  In  July  191 1  Wilson, 
Bowers,  and  Cherry-Garrard  made  a  sledge  journey  on  to  the 
Barrier,  and  they  experienced  temperatures  many  degrees  below 
those  recorded  at  the  same  time  at  Cape  Evans.  The  lowest  tem- 
perature they  encountered  was  -  77  °  F.,  which  is  the  record  low 


Table  I. 


Cape  Evans. 
77°  35'  S. 

Northern  stations. 

77°  3o'  N. 

Difference. 

February 
March  . 
April      . 
May  .    . 

18-6 
6-2 

-  i*4 

—  iro 

August     . 
September 
October    . 
November 

34*2 
21-4 

2'I 

-   8-3 

-I5-6 

*    -I5'2 

-  3'5 

-  27 

June  .    . 

-ir8 

December 

-16-6 

4-8 

July  .    . 

August  . 

September 

October 

November 

December 

—  19*6 

—  20'0 

-15*4 

—  4-0 
12*4 
2i'5 

January  . 
February 
March      . 
April    ,    . 

May     .    . 
June     .    . 

-23-1 
~23'3 
-I9-5 
~   5'4 
I5-4 
33'1 

3'5 
3"3 
4"  1 
i'4 
~  3'° 
-ir6 

January    .    . 

207 

July     .    . 

36-9 

—  l6'2 

temperature  for  the  Antarctic  and  has  only  been  surpassed  in 
the  Arctic  at  Werchojansk  in  Siberia — the  coldest  spot  on  the 
earth.  That  the  Barrier  is  much  colder  than  McMurdo  Sound 
was  made  clear  during  the  Discovery  Expedition,  but  the  temper- 
ature observations  made  by  the  Norwegian  Expedition  at  Fram- 
heim  have  shown  how  great  the  difference  really  is.  Framheim 
was  only  sixty  miles  nearer  the  Pole  than  Cape  Evans,  yet  the 
mean  temperature  measured  there  was  -  13-4°  F.,  that  is  130  F. 
lower  than  the  temperature  experienced  simultaneously  at  Cape 
Evans.  The  cause  of  the  great  difference  of  temperatures  be- 
tween the  Barrier  and  McMurdo  Sound  is  at  present  unknown, 
but  it  is  hoped  that  the  correct  solution  will  be  found  when  all 
the  data  have  been  discussed. 

Blizzards 

It  is  a  matter  of  experience,  even  in  England,  that  great  cold 
without  wind  is  much  easier  to  bear  than  a  much  higher  temper- 


BLIZZARDS  319 

ature  with  wind.  One  does  not  wrap  oneself  in  furs  when  going 
for  a  motor  ride  because  of  the  cold,  but  because  of  the  wind.  It 
is  the  same  in  polar  exploration;  the  wind  is  the  chief  enemy, 
not  the  cold. 

Those  who,  previous  to  reading  this  book,  have  read  Amund- 
sen's '  South  Pole  '  cannot  but  have  been  struck  by  the  fact  that 
while  this  book  is  full  of  descriptions  and  references  to  blizzards 
the  word  hardly  appears  in  the  other.  It  is  very  natural  to  ask 
the  reason  for  this  strange  difference.  The  reason  is  an  impor- 
tant one,  and  if  it  had  been  known  previously  the  history  of  the 
conquest  of  the  South  Pole  would  have  been  very  different.  One 
can  now  say  definitely  that  the  blizzards  which  have  been  so  fate- 
ful to  British  Antarctic  exploration  are  local  winds  confined  to 
the  western  half  of  the  Ross  Barrier.  The  meteorological  obser- 
vations made  simultaneously  at  Framheim,  Cape  Evans,  and 
Cape  Adare  have  thrown  a  flood  of  light  on  to  the  nature  of 
these  winds,  and  although  at  the  time  of  writing  the  observations 
have  not  been  sufficiently  discussed  to  give  us  a  complete  solution 
of  all  the  problems  connected  with  their  origin,  many  points  of 
general  interest  have  appeared,  and  an  attempt  will  be  made  to 
summarise  them  here. 

The  velocity  of  the  wind  can  be  recorded  automatically  with- 
out much  difficulty,  and  this  has  been  done  at  many  observatories, 
so  that  we  know  the  chief  characteristics  of  the  wind  in  most 
countries.  In  the  Antarctic  a  continuous  automatic  record  of  the 
wind  was  obtained  at  Cape  Evans;  while  at  Cape  Adare  and 
Framheim  frequent  eye  observations  were  made ;  we  have  there- 
fore the  data  for  an  interesting  comparison. 

The  character  of  the  wind  in  the  British  Isles  is  found  to  be 
very  similar  at  different  stations.  Calms  are  very  seldom  re- 
corded, and  at  the  other  end  of  the  scale  winds  of  a  greater  ve- 
locity than  50  miles  an  hour  are  rare.  There  -must  therefore  be 
some  intermediate  velocity  which  occurs  most  frequently.  The 
records  of  three  years  have  been  taken  for  Yarmouth  on  the 
Norfolk  coast,  and  the  number  of  times  winds  of  different  ve- 
locities occurred  counted. 

The  result  of  the  count  is  shown  in  the  second  column  of 
Table  II.,  from  which  it  will  be  seen  that  at  Yarmouth  winds 
having  a  velocity  of  4  miles  an  hour  or  less  only  occur  on  the 
average  during  5-2  hours  out  of  a  hundred.     The  wind  blows 


320 


SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION 


between  5  and  9  miles  per  hour  for  23  hours  out  of  the  hundred, 
and  velocities  between  10  and  14  miles  in  the  hour  are  met  with 
during  28-4  per  cent,  of  the  time.  Higher  velocities  than  these 
occur  less  frequently,  and  during  every  hundred  hours  the  wind 
blows  at  a  greater  velocity  than  45  miles  only  during  three- 
quarters  of  an  hour. 

Table  II. 

Frequency  of  Winds 


Wind  Velocity. 

Yarmouth. 

Framheim. 

Cape  Evans. 

Miles  per  hour. 

Per  cent. 

Per  cent. 

Per  cent. 

0  to    4 

5'2 

42*2 

29-8 

5  to    9 

23-0 

25*9 

IO'O 

10  to  14 

28-4 

I6-I 

8'i 

15  to  19 

i9'o 

8-0 

77 

20  to  24 

"•5 

3*6 

7-5 

25  to  29 

57 

1-9 

7'8 

30  to  34 

3*o 

i'4 

7*4 

35  to  39 

2'I 

o-6 

5'9 

40  to  44 

i'5 

0-3 

47 

45  to  49 

07 

2-9 

50  to  54 

0 

i'5 

55  to  59 

0 

07 

Greater  than  60 

0 

0'2 

The  figures  in  Table  II.  are  plotted  in  Fig.  1,  in  which  the 
thin  line  curve  represents  the  data  for  Yarmouth.  The  curve 
shows  clearly  how  the  wind  at  Yarmouth  blows  most  frequently 
with  a  velocity  of  about  10  miles  an  hour  and  that  the  frequency 
of  higher  and  lower  velocities  falls  off  very  rapidly  on  either  side 
of  the  maximum.  This  curve  is  typical  of  all  stations  in  the 
British  Isles.  In  every  case  investigated,  calms  are  of  infre- 
quent occurrence,  while  there  is  some  velocity  which  occurs  most 
frequently.  The  velocity  which  most  frequently  occurs  varies 
from  station  to  station,  being  least — about  5  miles  an  hour — at 
inland  stations  and  greatest — about  10  to  15  miles  an  hour — at 
coast  stations. 

A  similar  analysis  has  been  made  of  the  winds  at  Framheim 
— the  winter  quarters  of  Captain  Amundsen's  expedition.  The 
results  are  shown  in  the  third  column  of  Table  I.,  and  are  plotted 
by  a  broken  curve  in  Fig.  1.     It  will  at  once  be  seen  that  the 


FREQUENCY    OF    HIGH    WINDS  321 

result  is  entirely  different  from  that  obtained  for  Yarmouth.  At 
Framheim  calms  were  of  frequent  occurrence  and  the  wind  blew 
at  4  miles  an  hour  or  less  during  42  per  cent,  of  the  total  time. 
From  this  high  percentage  of  calms  winds  of  higher  velocity  fell 
off  rapidly  and  regularly.  It  is  important  to  notice  that  the  shape 
of  the  curve  for  Framheim  is  similar  to  that  of  the  curve  for 
Yarmouth  from  its  highest  point  to  its  end.  This  shape  is  fre- 
quently met  with  in  scientific  work,  and  indicates  that  the  change 
from  maximum  to  minimum  is  regular  without  any  outside  factor 
influencing  the  natural  change  from  stage  to  stage.  It  is  the  shape 
of  the  '  probability  curve,'  that  is,  the  curve  which  indicates  the 
probability  that  anything  will  occur  when  it  departs  from  a  most 
probable  value.  The  wind  conditions  shown  in  the  Framheim 
curve  are  the  ideal  ones  for  polar  work,  for  the  most  probable 
wind  is  a  calm,  and  the  frequency  with  which  higher  velocities 
occur  decreases  rapidly  and  regularly  as  the  velocities  increase. 

We  will  now  turn  to  the  results  of  a  similar  analysis  for  the 
winds  recorded  at  Cape  Evans.  Column  4  of  Table  I.  contains 
the  data,  and  they  are  plotted  on  the  thick  curve  of  Fig.  1.  Here 
we  have  a  curve  which  commences  in  a  manner  similar  to  that 
of  Framheim :  the  most  frequent  winds  are  those  with  a  velocity 
of  less  than  4  miles  an  hour,  and  higher  winds  are  less  frequently 
met  with.  In  fact  if  one  had  the  whole  of  the  Framheim  curve 
and  only  the  first  part  of  that  for  Cape  Evans — as  far  as  winds 
of  14  miles  an  hour — one  would  say  they  were  similar  and  would 
complete  the  Cape  Evans  curve  along  the  thin  dotted  line  indi- 
cated in  the  figure,  making  it  run  parallel  with  the  other  two 
curves. 

But  that  would  be  assuming  that  there  was  nothing  abnormal 
in  the  region  in  which  Cape  Evans  was  situated,  and  that  the 
winds  were  governed  by  the  same  laws  as  at  Framheim.  The 
real  curve  does  not  follow  this  ideal  curve,  but  takes  an  entirely 
different  shape.  The  frequency  of  winds  greater  than  15  miles 
an  hour  does  not  decrease  with  the  velocity,  for  all  winds  with 
velocities  between  15  miles  an  hour  and  34  miles  an  hour  occur 
with  practically  the  same  frequency.  It  is  not  until  we  reach 
higher  velocities  than  35  miles  an  hour  that  a  decrease  in  fre- 
quency accompanies  an  increase  in  velocity.  This  shape  of  the 
curve  indicates  that  there  is  some  factor  affecting  the  winds  at 
Cape  Evans  which  is  not  present  at  a  normal  station. 

vol.  11 — 21 


322 


SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION 


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> 

RECORD    OF    BLIZZARDS 


323 


This  factor  is  the  blizzard.  Superimposed  upon  the  normal 
winds  are  the  blizzard  winds  having  velocities  varying  from  10 
miles  an  hour  up  to  over  60,  in  consequence  of  which  high  winds 
occur  with  a  frequency  out  of  all  proportion  to  what  would  have 
occurred  if  there  had  been  no  blizzards. 

Thus  the  shape  of  the  wind  curve  for  Cape  Evans  shows 
clearly  that  the  blizzard  is  an  abnormal  phenomenon  superposed 
upon  the  ordinary  meteorological  conditions,  and  the  curve  for 
Framheim  that  it  does  not  occur  there. 

The  cause  of  the  blizzards,  their  frequency,  and  the  extent 
of  country  affected  by  them  will  be  fully  discussed  in  the  scientific 
reports  of  the  Expedition;  here  one  is  only  interested  in  them 
in  so  far  as  they  affected  the  fortunes  of  the  members  of  the 
Expedition.  The  following  table  gives  the  number  of  hours 
blizzard  winds  were  recorded  at  Cape  Evans — and  the  mean 
temperature  recorded  while  the  winds  were  blowing. 

Table  III. 
Number  of  blizzards  recorded  at  Cape  Evans 


A  blizzard  is  taken  as  a  southerly  wind  of  25  miles  an  hour  or 


over. 


Number  of  hours 

Number  of  hours 

Maximum  tem- 

with record. 

of  blizzard. 

perature  during 
the  blizzards. 

February  191 1 

612 

233 

+  16-4 

March 

744 

404 

+  57 

April 

720 

170 

-   17 

May 

744 

72 

-   8-i 

June 

720 

163 

-   0-9 

July 

744 

258 

-   9-8 

August 

726 

213 

-   6-3 

September 

720 

198 

-   4-6 

October 

744 

223 

-    1-4 

November 

720 

215 

+  97 

December 

720 

159 

+  22'6 

January  191 2 

744 

89 

+  23S 

February 

March 

324  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

It  is  only  necessary  to  study  this  table  for  a  few  minutes  to 
realise  the  conditions  which  had  to  be  faced,  and  it  explains  why 
the  fortunes  of  the  sledging  parties  were  affected  so  largely  by 
the  weather. 

With  regard  to  the  extent  of  the  country  subjected  to  bliz- 
zards we  cannot  of  course  be  very  precise.  Judging  from  Cap- 
tain Amundsen's  report  they  did  not  occur  at  Framheim,  nor  on 
the  route  he  took  to  the  Pole.  Very  high  winds  were  occasionally 
experienced  at  Cape  Adare,  but  they  were  in  no  way  connected 
with  our  blizzards;  as  a  rule  when  a  blizzard  was  blowing  at 
Cape  Evans  there  was  only  a  light  southerly  wind  at  Cape  Adare. 
We  know  that  typical  blizzards  were  encountered  at  all  points 
of  Captain  Scott's  route  as  far  as  the  Beardmore  Glacier. 
Whether  the  winds  met  with  on  the  Plateau  were  connected  with 
blizzards  on  the  Barrier  cannot  be  decided  until  a  more  thorough 
study  has  been  made  of  the  meteorological  records  kept  by  the 
different  sledging  parties.  From  the  data  at  present  available 
there  appears  no  doubt  that  blizzards  were  confined  almost 
entirely  to  the  western  half  of  the  Ross  Barrier. 

The  cause  of  the  blizzards,  and  why  they  occur  only  over  the 
western  half  of  the  Barrier,  are  questions  which  cannot  at  pres- 
ent be  answered  with  any  certainty.  It  appears  however  that  the 
chief  factors  are  the  following:  The  air  over  the  Barrier  cools 
down  much  more  than  the  air  over  the  Ross  Sea,  and  in  conse- 
quence there  is  a  region  of  relatively  low  pressure  over  the  sea. 
Into  this  region  the  air  from  the  Barrier  tends  to  move,  but 
owing  to  the  large  deflecting  force  of  the  earth's  rotation  so  near 
to  the  Pole,  the  air  cannot  move  from  south  to  north  but  is  driven 
towards  the  west. 

The  western  boundary  of  the  Barrier,  however,  is  a  range  of 
lofty  mountains  which  stop  the  westerly  motion  entirely.  In 
consequence  the  pressure  distribution  becomes  unstable  and  the 
tension  is  removed  by  a  rush  of  air  along  the  Western  Moun- 
tains, through  McMurdo  Sound  out  into  the  Ross  Sea.  The 
evidence  on  which  this  explanation  is  based  will  be  given  in  the 
scientific  report. 

In  order  to  give  some  idea  of  the  intensity  of  the  blizzards 
a  few  records  of  one  of  the  self-registering  anemometer  are  re- 
produced. These  records  were  taken  by  an  instrument  at  the  hut, 
and  as  the  hut  had  been  built  in  the  most  sheltered  place  avail- 


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DANGERS    OF    BLIZZARDS  325 

able  the  records  do  not  give  the  full  force  of  the  wind.  The 
direction  of  the  wind  has  been  entered  on  the  records,  and  in  the 
line  below  the  direction  the  time  has  been  shown,  as  the  time 
printed  on  the  charts  was  not  correct. 

The  record  for  March  12,  191 1,  is  typical  of  the  blizzards 
during  the  first  months  after  our  arrival,  when  the  depots  were 
being  laid  and  the  first  ponies  were  lost  (Fig.  2). 

The  record  for  July  23,  191 1,  is  interesting  as  this  was  the 
blizzard  which  nearly  proved  fatal  to  Wilson's  party  at  Cape 
Crozier.  The  important  thing  to  notice  in  this  record  is  the 
extreme  gustiness  of  the  wind:  in  the  hour  between  7  p.m.  and 
8  p.m.  the  wind  varied  in  velocity  between  24  and  84  miles  an 
hour  (Fig.  3). 

One  of  the  most  dangerous  peculiarities  of  the  blizzards  was 
the  suddenness  with  which  they  commenced.  Three  examples 
of  the  sudden  setting  in  of  blizzards  are  shown  in  Fig.  4. 

The  following  tables  contain  the  chief  meteorological  results 
as  far  as  they  were  worked  out  at  the  time  of  writing.  The 
Framheim  results,  taken  from  Amundsen's1  '  The  South  Pole,' 
have  been  included  for  ready  reference. 


Barometer 

The  barometer  observations  have  been  reduced  to  sea-level 
and  normal  temperature  and  gravity,  except  in  the  case  of  Fram- 
heim, which  needs  approximately  -03  inch  adding  to  reduce  to 
sea-level  (see  Amundsen's  'The  South  Pole'). 


Wind 

The  Cape  Evans  wind  amounts  are  from  a  continuous  record 
by  a  self-recording  Robinson  anemometer. 

The  Framheim  wind  amounts  are  from  observations  made 
with  a  portable  anemometer  for  a  few  minutes  three  times  a  day. 

The  Cape  Adare  wind  was  estimated  on  the  Beaufort  Scale 
and  reduced  to  miles  per  hour  by  the  equivalents  used  in  the  Lon- 
don Meteorological  Office. 


326 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


Maximum  Wind 

The  maximum  wind  is  obtained  as  follows : 

(a)  Cape  Evans.     The  highest  amount  of  wind  recorded 
in  a  complete  hour;  higher  winds  were  always  recorded  in  gusts. 

(b)  Framheim.     The  highest  recorded  reading  of  the  hand 
anemometer. 

(c)  Cape  Adare.    The  highest  Beaufort  number  reduced  to 
miles  per  hour. 

Potential  Gradient 


The   values   are   the   mean   of   those   obtained   during 
weather  reduced  to  volts  per  metre  over  a  level  surface. 


fine 


Cape  Evans 


Wind, 

IN 

Barometer,  Inches. 

Temperature, 

°F. 

Miles  per 

Sis 

Hour. 

O      ?H 

PhO 

1911. 

Mean. 

Max. 

Min. 

Mean. 

Max, 

Min. 

Mean 
Vel. 

Max. 
Vel. 

Feb. 

29'3I 

29*74 

28-96 

187 

33 

O 

23*6 

6l 

March 

29*21 

29*51 

28-85 

7*2 

23 

-  7 

257 

57 

75 

April 

29*32 

29*80 

28-82 

—     1*1 

13 

-18 

I5'9 

55 

73 

May 

29-23 

29*84 

28-26 

-io*8 

14 

-29 

I2'0 

54 

62 

June 

29*11 

2982 

28-65 

-13*5 

17 

-37 

I3-2 

56 

72 

July 

29-08 

29'55 

28-52 

—  21*1 

8 

-50 

i8-5 

66 

84 

Aug. 

29-19 

29-72 

28-64 

-2o-8 

15 

-42 

167 

66 

78 

Sept. 

29*16 

29-85 

28-29 

-15-8 

11 

-37 

i4'5 

57 

105 

Oct. 

28-82 

29-76 

28'20 

-  3*5 

8 

—  20 

17-9 

59 

91 

Nov. 

29-63 

30-15 

28*98 

+  12-4 

26 

—   2 

16-1 

43 

89 

Dec. 

2975 

30-04 

29*08 

+  22*0 

32 

+  8 

147 

48 

107 

1912. 
Jan. 

29'43 

29-74 

29*05 

+  21-4 

39 

+  10 

io*9 

54 

98 

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POTENTIAL    GRADIENT    TABLES 


327 


Framheim 


Wind, 

Is 

Barometer,  Inches. 

Temperature, 

°F. 

Miles  per 
Hour. 

O    h 

1911. 

Mean. 

Max. 

Min. 

Mean. 

Max. 

Min. 

Mean 
Vel. 

Max. 
Vel. 

April 

29*80 

29*80 

28-69 

-I7-I 

+  12*2 

~54'4 

7'5 

35'5 

May 

29-02 

29*66 

28-02 

-32-0 

-   4*0 

-S9*i 

4'i 

22-5 

June 

28-88 

29'54 

28-50 

-29-5 

+  12-9 

-68*8 

4-1 

307 

July 

28-86 

29-51 

28*24 

-33'° 

+  10-4 

-65*2 

8-2 

33 '4 

Aug. 

28*94 

29-46 

28-5I 

-48-1 

—  11*2 

—  73'3 

6-8 

34' 1 

Sept. 

28*90 

29-46 

28*04 

-34*5 

H-I5-8 

-63-4 

7*5 

42-3 

Oct. 

28-61 

29-66 

28-IO 

—  io'6 

+  15-8 

-40-3 

12-3 

36-8 

Nov. 

29-49 

30-OI 

29*08 

-  5-6 

+  22-7 

-18-4 

8-9 

40-9 

Dec. 

29-66 

3CI4 

29*20 

—  20'9 

+3i7 

+   r8 

8*2 

40-9 

Jan. 

29-36 

29*62 

29*01 

-i6*i 

+  27*5 

+  1*4 

5'5 

I4'3 

Cape  Adare 


Wind, 

Barometer,  Inches. 

Temperature, 

°F. 

Miles  per 

C*^ 

Hour. 

1911. 

Mean. 

Max. 

Min. 

Mean. 

Max. 

Min. 

Mean 
Vel. 

Max. 
Vel. 

March 

29*12 

29-42 

2875 

20'6 

28 

IO 

io#o 

63 

April 

29*25 

29-79 

28-6I 

9-0 

22 

-   8 

8-4 

74 

May 

29*06 

29-66 

28-28 

-  °'3 

24 

-28 

137 

74 

June 

29*11 

29-70 

28-63 

-16-1 

IO 

-35 

57 

63 

July 

29*OI 

29-68 

28-50 

-14-9 

9 

-34 

5*2 

63 

Aug. 

29*06 

29*72 

28-15 

-i3'4 

12 

-34 

8-i 

74 

Sept. 

28*99 

29-94 

28-24 

+    0'2 

20 

-25 

n-6 

74 

Oct. 

28*73 

29*19 

28-38 

+  6-2 

26 

—  11 

6-3 

44 

Nov. 

29-56 

20'07 

29-OI 

+  I9-9 

3i 

+  5 

6*2 

36 

Dec. 

29-72 

20-07 

29-14 

+  8-3 

39 

+  16 

77 

36 

SUMMARY  OF  BIOLOGICAL  WORK  CARRIED  OUT 
ON  BOARD  THE   TERRA  NOVA,   19 10-19 13 

By  D.  G.  Lillie 

Captain  Scott,  with  his  characteristic  thoroughness,  made  it 
possible  for  scientific  work  to  be  carried  out  by  the  ship's  party 
not  only  on  their  three  summer  visits  to  the  Antarctic,  but  also 
during  the  two  winters  spent  in  New  Zealand  and  on  the  out- 
ward and  homeward  voyages.  As  the  early  publication  of  this 
book  makes  it  impossible  to  give  any  adequate  account  of  the 
various  biological  results  which  may  have  been  achieved,  it  is 
proposed  to  give  here  a  brief  summary  of  the  collections  brought 
home,  together  with  a  few  notes  concerning  them,  in  order  to 
help  the  general  reader  to  form  some  idea  of  what  he  will  find 
in  the  Biological  Reports  of  this  Expedition  when  they  appear. 

The  Outward  and  Homeward  Voyages 

Whenever  opportunities  occurred  on  the  outward  and  home- 
ward voyages  between  England  and  New  Zealand  tow-nets  of 
fine  mesh  and  of  various  sizes  were  put  overboard  to  catch  the 
small  animals  and  plants  which  drift  about  in  the  sea  and  form 
the  staple  food  of  the  whalebone  whales  and  of  many  birds  and 
fishes. 

These  floating  organisms,  which  include  representatives  of 
all  the  larger  divisions  of  the  animal  kingdom,  are  spoken  of  col- 
lectively as  the  plankton.  On  some  occasions  the  net  was  towed 
behind  the  ship  for  about  half  an  hour  to  catch  the  floating  popu- 
lation of  the  surface  waters.  Sometimes  the  ship  was  kept  sta- 
tionary and  the  net  sent  down  by  a  sinker  to  500  fathoms  or  less 
and  hauled  up  again;  by  this  means  samples  of  those  forms 
which  live  below  the  surface  were  obtained. 

About  70  samples  of  the  plankton  were  collected.  They  vary 
greatly  in  size,  one  catch  hardly  covers  the  bottom  of  a  half- 


D.    G. 


LILLIE,    WITH    SOME    OF    THE    SILICEOUS    SPONGES    OF    WHICH    HE    SECURED 
A    RECORD    HAUL    WITH    THE    DREDGE 


THE    PLANKTON  329 

pound  honey  jar,  while  another  requires  two  seven-pound  fruit 
jars  to  contain  it. 

The  size  of  a  catch,  of  course,  depends  upon  various  factors, 
such  as  the  size  of  the  net,  the  time  it  was  fishing,  or  the  amount 
of  water  passing  through  it,  and  the  quantity  of  plankton  in  the 
sea  at  the  place  where  the  haul  was  obtained. 

A  small  number  of  sea-water  samples  were  collected  from 
various  depths  by  means  of  the  Nansen-Pattersson  water-bottle. 
These  were  generally  taken  from  the  areas  in  which  plankton 
samples  were  obtained.  The  object  of  these  water  samples  is  to 
ascertain  the  salinity  of  the  sea  at  different  points  and  at  differ- 
ent depths. 

Any  change  in  the  salinity  means  a  marked  change  in  the 
character  of  the  plankton. 

The  plankton  catches,  when  sorted,  will  doubtless  be  found 
to  contain  many  new  genera  and  species  to  add  to  the  list  of  the 
known  forms  of  living  things.  The  vertical  hauls,  which  were 
generally  made  for  quantitative  purposes,  will  help  to  increase 
our  knowledge  of  the  relative  abundance  of  the  plankton  over 
the  oceans  of  the  world  and  at  different  seasons  of  the  year. 
Isolated  observations  such  as  these  may  be  of  small  value  in 
themselves,  but  every  expedition  which  collects  such  data  thereby 
adds  its  quota  to  the  gradually  accumulating  mass  of  evidence 
and  brings  the  time  for  generalisation  nearer  to  hand.  A  knowl- 
edge of  the  relative  abundance  of  the  food  supply  of  the  ocean 
is  not  only  of  scientific  interest  but  of  commercial  importance. 

On  the  homeward  voyage  two  satisfactory  hauls  with  the 
trawl  were  obtained,  one  off  the  Falkland  Islands  in  a  depth  of 
125  fathoms,  and  the  other  off  Rio  de  Janeiro  in  40  fathoms. 
The  trawl  scrapes  the  bottom  of  the  sea,  and  brings  up  a  fair 
sample  of  whatever  animals  and  plants  it  can  entrap  or  uproot. 

So  little  scientific  trawling  has  been  done  in  the  Southern 
Hemisphere  that  almost  every  haul  has  a  chance  of  containing 
some  creature  hitherto  unknown  from  the  area  in  which  the  catch 
was  obtained. 

Animals  which  live  at  the  bottom  of  the  sea  are  known  to 
zoologists  as  the  benthos. 

During  the  outward  voyage  a  day  was  spent  on  the  island  of 
South  Trinidad  by  several  members  of  the  Expedition,  and  col- 


330  SCOTT'S    LAST   EXPEDITION 

lections  of  land  plants,  land  spiders,  insects,  and  marine  coastal 
animals  were  obtained. 

The  collection  of  plants  has  been  examined  by  Dr.  O.  Stapf 
of  Kew  Herbarium,  and  found  to  contain  some  thirteen  species 
which  have  not  hitherto  been  recorded  from  the  island.  South 
Trinidad  is  a  small  volcanic  island  lying  about  500  miles  from 
the  coast  of  Brazil,  whence  it  has  derived  its  scanty  fauna  and 
flora  by  means  of  such  agents  as  winds,  ocean  currents,  and 
birds.  On  the  voyage  home  we  actually  saw  one  of  these  agen- 
cies at  work.  When  the  ship  was  rather  more  than  a  hundred 
miles  from  the  Brazilian  coast,  to  the  southward  of  Trinidad,  a 
large  number  of  moths,  belonging  to  about  four  species,  were 
blown  on  board  by  a  S.W.  wind. 

An  up-to-date  account  of  the  fauna  and  flora  of  this  island 
will  be  included  in  the  Reports. 

New  Zealand 

When  the  Terra  Nova  was  engaged  upon  her  three  months' 
surveying  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Three  Kings  Islands,  off 
the  extreme  north  of  New  Zealand,  some  80  samples  of  plankton 
and  32  samples  of  sea-water  were  obtained. 

Seven  successful  trawls  in  depths  varying  from  15  to  300 
fathoms  yielded  a  good  collection  of  benthos  from  this  area. 

During  the  first  winter  the  ship's  biologist  spent  five  weeks 
at  Mr.  Cook's  whaling  station  near  the  Bay  of  Islands  in  the 
north  of  New  Zealand;  and  in  the  second  winter,  through  the 
kindness  of  Mr.  L.  S.  Hasle,  four  months  were  spent  on  two 
Norwegian  floating  factories  which  were  exploiting  the  same 
waters.  Three  species  of  whalebone  whales  were  examined  and 
found  to  be  identical  with  the  three  northern  species — Balanop- 
tera  Sibbaldi,  the  Blue  Whale;  B.  borealis,  Rudolphi's  Rorqual; 
and  Megaptera  longimana,  the  Humpback  Whale.  About  30 
specimens  of  the  last  species  were  examined.  An  embryo  2y2 
inches  in  length  was  obtained  from  a  female  humpback  whale 
which  weighed  about  60  tons. 

While  at  the  Bay  of  Islands  an  opportunity  was  taken  of 
examining  the  inheritance  of  the  pigment  in  several  families  of 
Maori-European  half  castes.     Sufficient  data  were  collected  to 


NEW    ZEALAND    STUDIES  331 

show  that  the  phenomenon  of  Mendelian  segregation  evidently 
takes  place. 

Collections  of  fossil  plants  were  made  from  several  localities 
in  the  South  Island  of  New  Zealand,  with  a  view  to  settling 
the  geological  age  of  the  so-called  '  glossopteris  beds  '  of  Mt. 
Potts.  From  this  material  Dr.  E.  A.  Newell  Arber  *  has  been 
able  to  show  that  the  oldest  known  plant-bearing  beds  in  New 
Zealand  are  of  Rhaeto- Jurassic  age. 

One  volume  of  the  Reports  will  be  devoted  to  a  description 
of  these  fossil  flora,  together  with  the  fossil  plants  found  by 
the  Polar  Party  and  others  in  the  Antarctic. 

An  account  of  some  undescribed  collections  of  New  Zealand 
Tertiary  and  Mesozoic  marine  invertebrates  is  to  be  included  in 
the  Expedition  Reports. 

The  Antarctic 

During  the  three  summer  voyages  to  the  Antarctic  a  series 
of  qualitative  and  quantitative  plankton  samples  were  taken  be- 
tween New  Zealand  and  McMurdo  Sound,  and  also  in  different 
parts  of  the  quadrant  visited  by  the  ship. 

The  number  of  plankton  samples  obtained  was  135.  These 
comprise  27  collected  during  the  first  year,  48  the  second  year, 
and  60  the  third  year. 

Also  96  samples  of  sea-water  were  obtained. 

The  increase  in  the  relative  size  of  the  plankton  catches  as 
we  left  the  warm  seas  around  New  Zealand  and  entered  the 
cold  waters  of  the  far  south  was  very  marked.  This  increase 
was  especially  noticeable  in  the  case  of  the  diatoms.  These 
minute  plants  became  so  numerous  as  to  choke  the  meshes  of  the 
net  after  it  had  been  fishing  only  five  minutes.  In  the  middle  of 
pack  ice  the  diatoms  were  much  less  numerous.  This  may  have 
been  due  to  the  ice  floes  shutting  out  the  sunlight  or  to  an  altera- 
tion in  the  salinity  of  the  sea  caused  by  the  melting  of  the  ice. 

Some  fifty  samples  of  the  muds  and  oozes  from  the  bottom 
of  the  sea  between  New  Zealand  and  the  Antarctic  were  collected. 
A  rough  examination  of  some  of  these  showed  them  to  consist 
of  the  skeletons  of  diatoms  and  other  inhabitants  of  the  surface 

*  Arber,  Proc.  Roy.  Soc,  B.  vol.  86,  1913;  Proc.  Camb.  Phil.  Soc,    vol.  xvii.  pt.  i. 
I9I3- 


332  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

waters  which  had  fallen  to  the  bottom.  These  samples  were  ob- 
tained by  letting  down  a  weighted  tube  on  the  end  of  the  sound- 
ing wire.  The  tube  would  sink  vertically  into  the  mud  and  bring 
up  several  inches  of  the  deposit.  Thus,  if  there  were  six  inches 
of  mud  in  the  tube  a  sample  taken  from  the  bottom  of  the  tube 
would  come  from  about  six  inches  below  the  surface  of  the  sea 
floor. 

In  the  Ross  Sea  it  was  found  that  many  of  the  diatoms  in  a 
sample  of  mud  taken  from  four  inches  below  the  surface  of  the 
deposit  still  contained  their  protoplasm  and  chlorophyll  bodies. 
In  other  words,  they  were  undecomposed. 

When  trawling  in  McMurdo  Sound  it  was  a  common  occur- 
rence to  find  that  nearly  half  the  catch  consisted  of  dead  animals. 

From  an  examination  of  the  summer  temperatures  at  vari- 
ous depths  in  several  parts  of  the  Ross  Sea  it  was  found  that  a 
temperature  of  +  I,0°  Centigrade  was  hardly  ever  reached. 
The  usual  temperature  was  slightly  below  o°  Centigrade. 

At  these  low  temperatures  bacterial  decomposition  is  at  a 
minimum,  and  the  food  supply  of  the  ocean  remains  in  cold  stor- 
age. However,  a  small  amount  of  decomposition  must  take 
place  to  allow  of  the  production  of  nitrates  for  the  plants. 

The  abundance  of  plankton  in  Antarctic  waters  is  shown  by 
a  brownish  discolouration  of  the  sea  produced  by  the  diatoms. 

Another  indication  is  given  by  large  numbers  of  whalebone 
whales,  which  feed  upon  the  plankton. 

It  is  true  that  only  about  three  species  of  whalebone  whales 
were  recognised  south  of  the  pack,  but  the  number  of  individuals 
seen  daily  around  the  ship  was  very  great.  The  two  commonest 
species  seen  were  Balanoptera  Sibbaldi,  the  Blue  Whale,  and 
Balanoptera  rostrata,  the  Pike  Whale. 

The  large  schools  of  killer  whales,  Orca  gladiator,  are  an 
indirect  indication  of  a  plenteous  food  supply,  because  they  feed 
upon  seals  and  penguins,  which  in  their  turn  live  upon  the 
plankton. 

If  it  was  fully  realised  by  whalers  that  there  is  a  natural 
reason  for  the  abundance  of  whales  in  the  cold  waters  of  the 
polar  regions,  they  would  not  exploit  warm  seas  such  as  that  off 
the  north  of  New  Zealand  with  a  '  trying  out '  plant  suitable  for 
South  Georgia  or  the  South  Shetlands  and  so  lose  large  sums  of 
money. 


*   *» 


F.    DEBENHAM 


THE    OCEAN    FOOD    SUPPLY  333 

Fifteen  rich  hauls  with  trawl  and  dredge  in  depths  varying 
from  40  to  300  fathoms  enabled  a  large  collection  of  the  benthos 
to  be  made.  A  striking  feature  of  the  marine  fauna  of  the  Ant- 
arctic is  the  extraordinary  wealth  of  individuals,  while  the  variety 
of  forms  does  not  appear  to  be  very  great.  Also  the  large  size 
to  which  some  species  attain  as  compared  with  their  relatives  in 
warmer  seas  is  very  marked. 

This  is,  however,  not  the  case  with  animals  which  require 
carbonate  of  lime,  for  the  secretion  of  limy  skeletons  by  members 
of  the  benthos  seems  to  be  at  a  minimum  in  the  cold  Antarctic 
waters.  The  shells  of  molluscs  are  small  and  fragile.  Some  sea- 
snails  have  no  lime  in  their  shells  at  all. 

It  requires  the  warm  tropical  seas  for  animals  with  calcareous 
skeletons  to  reach  their  vigorous  growth. 

Many  of  the  bottom  animals  crawl  over  the  sea  floor  and  pass 
the  nutritious  mud  through  their  digestive  organs  after  the  man- 
ner of  earth  worms;  others  take  up  a  stationary  vertical  posi- 
tion, and  by  means  of  tentacles  waft  the  falling  diatoms  into  their 
mouths  before  they  have  time  to  reach  the  bottom. 

Almost  every  trawl  brought  up  quantities  of  large  siliceous 
sponges  covered  with  glassy  spicules. 

Good  collections  of  sea-anemones,  worms,  urchins,  starfishes, 
Crustacea,  sea-spiders,  molluscs,  and  fishes  were  obtained.  The 
collection  of  fishes  has  already  been  found  to  contain  some  new 
genera  and  several  new  species.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that 
many  new  forms  will  be  found  among  the  other  groups. 

Considerable  quantities  of  three  species  of  Cephalo discus 
were  obtained.  These  animals  are  of  interest  because  they  show 
signs  of  a  distant  relationship  to  the  vertebrates,  though  their 
mode  of  life  is  very  dissimilar.  The  minute  individuals  live  to- 
gether in  colonies,  and  build  up  a  gelatinous  tree-like  house. 

The  young  forms  of  Cephalo  discus  are  very  imperfectly 
known,  and  it  is  hoped  that  larval  stages  may  be  found  among 
ihe  material  brought  home,  so  that  further  light  may  be  thrown 
upon  the  development  of  these  curious  animals. 

In  the  last  volume  of  the  Biological  Reports  it  is  proposed  to 
review  the  known  marine  benthos  of  the  continental  shelves  of 
the  globe  in  regard  to  its  distribution  in  time  and  space.  One  of 
the  objects  of  this  enquiry  will  be  to  ascertain,  as  far  as  our  pres- 
ent knowledge  will  permit,  if  there  has  been  any  tendency  on  the 


334  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

part  of  the  Benthos  to  originate  in  the  Northern  Hemisphere  and 
migrate  southward. 

The  work  of  Wallace  on  the  distribution  of  land  animals  has 
shown  that  there  appears  to  have  been  a  tendency  throughout 
the  history  of  the  earth  for  the  land  animals  to  originate  in  the 
Northern  Hemisphere  and  gradually  find  their  way  south.  The 
great  belt  of  land  which  through  long  ages  has  almost  encircled 
the  northern  half  of  the  world  seems  to  have  been  nature's  work- 
shop for  the  evolution  of  types.  These  new  forms  spreading  out 
from  their  points  of  origin  had  to  find  their  way  southward  along 
the  attenuated  land  areas  of  South  America,  Africa,  and  Austral- 
asia. Thus  on  account  of  their  relative  isolation  these  three 
southern  continents  became  characterised  by  peculiar  and  in  some 
cases  comparatively  primitive  assemblages  of  animals.  They 
became,  as  it  were,  behind  the  fashion.  For  instance,  Australia 
to-day  still  has  its  marsupial  population  of  kangaroos  and  such- 
like animals.  In  Europe  marsupial  types  are  only  found  as  fos- 
sils, showing  that  they  lived  here  millions  of  years  ago  in  the 
mesozoic  ages  of  the  earth's  history,  but  have  long  since  been  ex- 
terminated and  supplanted  by  newer  types. 

On  account  of  the  inadequate  nature  of  the  fauna  of  large 
parts  of  the  Southern  Hemisphere,  man  has  had  to  stock  these 
lands  with  northern  animals. 

Very  few  cases  are  known  where  land  animals  of  a  southern 
origin  have  advanced  northwards.  Whether  this  generalisation 
applies  in  the  case  of  the  marine  benthos  of  the  continental 
shelves  presents  an  interesting  field  of  enquiry.  The  collections 
brought  home  in  recent  years  by  the  various  Antarctic  and  other 
expeditions  which  have  trawled  in  the  Southern  Hemisphere  will, 
perhaps,  make  it  possible  to  give  some  sort  of  answer  to  this 
question. 


E.    W.    NELSON    WITH    THE    NANSEN-PETERSEN    INSULATED    WATER-BOTTLE 


MARINE    BIOLOGY— WINTER   QUARTERS, 
1911-1913 

By  E.  W.  Nelson 

Before  the  collections  have  been  examined  it  is  difficult  to  say 
much  about  scientific  results.  The  following  is  a  very  brief 
account  of  the  biological  work  undertaken  from  the  Cape  Evans 
shore  station  during  the  two  years  the  Expedition  wintered  there. 

In  the  late  summer  of  191 1  a  trip  was  made  across  the  Barne 
Glacier  to  Cape  Royds. 

The  lakes  in  the  vicinity  of  Sir  Ernest  Shackleton's  winter 
quarters  were  covered  with  only  a  very  few  inches  of  ice,  showing 
that,  with  the  exception  of  Blue  Lake,  they  had  thawed  out  that 
summer.  Clear  Lake  was  tow-netted  by  cutting  a  long  slit  in  the 
ice  and  dragging  the  tow-net  backwards  and  forwards.  Small 
catches  were  obtained  containing  chiefly  unicellular  algae  and 
protozoa.  A  few  rotifers  were  caught,  but  no  specimens  of  the 
blood-red  species  Philodina  gregoria,  found  in  such  quantity  by 
Mr.  Murray,  could  be  discovered.  The  masses  of  filamentous 
algae  described  by  him  are  a  constant  feature  of  any  lake  frozen 
or  thawed.  Contrary  to  our  expectation  none  of  the  larger  lakes 
thawed  out  again  during  our  stay. 

On  the  return  to  Cape  Evans  an  attempt  was  made  to  carry 
out  a  suggestion  made  by  Mr.  E.  T.  Browne.  The  sea  was  not 
yet  frozen  over,  and  the  idea  was  to  drop  a  tow-net  from  a  kite 
flown  out  over  the  sea  and  then  pull  the  net  in  to  shore.  A  kite 
was  made  and  the  net  dropped  about  250  yards  out,  but  unfortu- 
nately small  floating  ice  crystals  choked  the  net  and  completely 
spoilt  the  catches. 

After  the  sea  had  frozen  over  the  general  winter  work  was 
commenced.  A  hole  was  cut  through  the  ice  and  a  wall  of  ice 
blocks  built  round  to  afford  some  shelter  from  the  wind.  This 
hole  had  to  be  cut  every  day,  freezing  during  the  night  to  as 
much  as  two  feet  thick. 


336  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

In  the  spring  of  191 1  (September)  the  sea  ice  at  this  point 
was  8  feet  3  inches  thick. 

The  labour  entailed  in  keeping  the  holes  open  was  consider- 
able, and  the  time  taken  in  this  work  very  appreciably  curtailed 
the  time  available  for  making  collections. 

The  position  chosen  was  about  three-quarters  of  a  mile  dis- 
tant from  the  hut  in  the  strait  between  Cape  Evans  and  Inacces- 
sible Island,  the  depth  at  this  point  being  100  fathoms. 

Tow-nets  of  various  sized  mesh  were  set  at  varying  depths, 
the  current  under  the  ice  being  sufficiently  strong  to  allow  them 
to  fish  satisfactorily  as  a  stationary  net.  Very  good  catches  were 
obtained,  which  were  brought  back  to  the  hut  in  Thermos  flasks. 
These  flasks  proved  quite  invaluable,  since  catches  could  be  kept 
in  perfect  condition  in  the  lowest  temperatures  which  otherwise 
would  have  been  ruined  by  crystals  of  ice  forming  and  spoiling 
all  the  more  delicate  specimens. 

The  physical  conditions  under  which  these  drifting  or  plank- 
ton organisms  exist  is  of  great  importance,  and  observations  were 
regularly  taken  with  this  end  in  view. 

The  Expedition  was  fortunate  in  possessing  some  very  fine 
reversing  thermometers  made  by  Richter  of  Berlin,  and  these 
were  used  to  determine  the  temperature  of  the  sea.  During  the 
winter  a  reversing  water-bottle  was  used  to  obtain  samples  of  sea 
water  for  analysis,  but  with  what  success  cannot  be  ascertained 
until  the  analyses  have  been  carried  out. 

During  the  winter  only  one  sample  could  be  taken  each  day, 
as  the  instrument  had  to  be  taken  back  to  the  hut,  thawed  out, 
and  thoroughly  dried. 

'Soundings  were  also  taken  through  cracks  and  seals'  blow 
holes,  and  these  will  be  plotted  on  the  charts. 

During  the  first  year  a  complete  record  was  obtained  with 
an  automatic  tide  gauge  constructed  and  looked  after  by  Mr. 
Day.  It  might  be  mentioned  here  that  the  McMurdo  Sound 
tides  present  some  unusual  features.  Spring-tides  and  neap  tides 
are  quite  masked  by  the  diurnal  inequality  of  heights,  depending 
on  the  declination  of  the  moon.  For  example,  with  high  declina- 
tions N.  or  S.  the  greatest  rise  and  fall  takes  place,  and  there  is 
only  one  high  water  and  one  low  water  in  the  twenty-four  hours. 
But  with  the  moon  on  the  equinoctial  there  is  much  less  rise  and 
fall,  and  two  high  waters  and  two  low  waters  are  experienced. 


THE    CURRENT    METER  337 

Without  entering  upon  any  complex  theory  this  phenomenon 
can  be  explained  by  the  fact  that  with  a  high  southerly  declination 
the  tide  that  would  be  normally  caused  by  the  inferior  wave  is 
so  small  as  to  be  inappreciable  to  ordinary  observation.  With 
the  moon  at  maximum  northerly  declination  it  would,  of  course, 
be  the  superior  wave  that  would  not  appear.  With  the  moon 
on  the  equator  diurnal  inequality  disappears,  and  the  two  tides 
are  experienced. 

During  the  short  summer  before  the  work  was  interrupted 
by  sledging  and  before  the  sea  ice  had  broken  up,  the  air  tem- 
perature was  warm  enough  to  permit  observations  on  the  cur- 
rents being  taken  with  an  Ekmann  current  meter.  Series  of  meas- 
urements were  obtained  with  this  instrument  which  should  prove 
of  great  interest. 

Exceptionally  severe  weather  characterised  the  second  win- 
ter, and  the  fact  that  the  sea  ice  was  being  constantly  blown  out 
made  marine  work  impossible  for  extended  periods. 

Since  a  very  complete  tide  record  had  been  obtained  during 
the  first  year,  it  was  decided  to  convert  the  instrument  used  for 
this  purpose,  of  which  only  one  was  available,  into  a  seiche  meter. 
One  record  was  obtained  and  then  the  instrument  was  lost,  owing 
to  sea  ice  which  past  experience  had  led  us  to  believe  was  safe, 
blowing  out  and  carrying  the  apparatus  to  sea.  Otherwise  the 
programme  was  similar  to  the  previous  year. 


VOL.  n—22 


OUTFIT    AND    PREPARATION 

By  Commander  E.  R.  G.  R.  Evans,  C.B.,  R.N. 

On  September  13,  1909,  Captain  Scott  published  his  plans  for 
the  British  Antarctic  Expedition  of  19 10,  which  he  proposed  to 
organise,  equip,  and  lead. 

His  appeal  to  the  nation,  in  fact  to  the  Empire,  for  funds 
was  heartily  endorsed  by  the  Press,  and  the  first  £10,000  was 
forthcoming  by  the  spring  of  19 10.  This  amount  was  collected 
by  Captain  Scott  and  his  confreres  and  was  mainly  subscribed  by 
private  individuals.  The  sums  given  varied  from  £1000  to  6d., 
coming  from  people  in  all  stations  of  life. 

This  nucleus  fund  was  obtained  only  after  the  most  strenuous 
efforts  on  the  part  of  Captain  Scott,  but  after  the  first  £10,000 
had  been  raised  the  Government  grant  of  £20,000  followed,  and 
the  programme  of  the  Expedition  became  more  and  more  ambi- 
tious. 

Government  grants  were  subsequently  made  by  the  Austra- 
lian Commonwealth,  the  Dominion  of  New  Zealand,  and  South 
Africa,  and  Mr.  Samuel  Hordern  of  Sydney  contributed  £2500 
to  swell  the  Australian  contribution. 

An  office  was  taken  and  furnished  at  36  Victoria  Street,  S.W., 
and  here  the  preliminary  organisation  of  the  Expedition  was 
carried  out  by  Captain  Scott,  his  second-in-command,  and  Dr. 
Wilson,  the  Chief  of  the  Scientific  Staff. 

The  services  of  Mr.  F.  R.  H.  Drake,  R.N.,  a  Paymaster  in 
the  Royal  Navy,  were  obtained  as  Secretary  to  the  Expedition, 
and  this  capable  and  energetic  officer  made  himself  so  invaluable 
that  he  was  eventually  asked  to  take  part  in  the  Expedition  itself.* 
Captain  Scott  was  determined  that  this  Expedition  should  be 
run  on  business  lines;  Sir  Edgar  Speyer  kindly  consented  to  act 
as  Honorary  Treasurer,  and  thanks  to  his  sound  advice  the 
finance  of  the  Expedition  was  used  to  the  best  advantage. 

*  During  Mr.  Drake's  absence  on  the  Expedition  Mr.  E.  G.  H.  Evans  became 
(honorary)  acting  secretary. 


FIRMS    SUPPLYING  STORES  339 

Messrs.  James  Fraser  &  Sons  acted  throughout  as  Honorary 
Auditors. 

Mr.  George  F.  Wyatt  was  appointed  business  manager,  and 
to  him  the  Expedition  owes  a  debt  of  gratitude  for  his  expert 
selection  of  firms  to  supply  provisions  and  equipment.  Mr. 
Wyatt  was  a  perfect  encyclopaedia  in  the  matter  of  stores,  and 
Captain  Scott  was  delighted  when  he  temporarily  gave  up  his 
business  in  order  that  his  whole  time  might  be  spent  in  assisting 
the  Expedition. 

Perhaps  it  would  not  be  out  of  place  to  mention  here  some 
of  the  great  firms  who  were  selected  to  supply  us  with  provisions. 
Messrs.  J.  S.  Fry  &  Sons  supplied  our  cocoa,  sledging  and  fancy 
chocolate — delicious  comforts,  excellently  packed  and  always  in 
good  condition. 

Messrs.  Huntley  &  Palmer :  Ship's  biscuit,  fancy  biscuit  and 
cakes,  and  all  the  sledging  biscuit  which  stood  us  so  well  and  was 
so  conveniently  packed  for  travelling. 

Messrs.  Colman  of  Norwich:  Flour  and  mustard,  as  in  the 
Discovery  Expedition. 

Messrs.  Henry  Tate  &  Sons:  Sugar,  which  was  in  perfect 
condition  even  after  three  years. 

Messrs.  Peter  Dawson,  Ldt. :  Whisky. 

Messrs.  Cooper,  Cooper  &  Co. :  '  The  South  Pole  Tea,' 
which,  like  the  cocoa,  helped  us  to  accomplish  our  best 
marches. 

Messrs.  Griffiths,  Macalister  &  Co.  of  Liverpool  supplied 
our  tinned  meats  and  general  groceries. 

Messrs.  Price's  Patent  Candle  Co.,  Ltd. :  Candles,  which 
were  purposely  made  edible,  though  never  eaten. 

Messrs.  John  Burgess  &  Son,  Ltd. :  Pickles  and  condiments. 

Messrs.  Abram  Lyle  &  Sons,  Ltd. :   Golden  syrup. 

Messrs.  Beach  &  Sons,  Evesham:  Assorted  jams. 

Messrs.  Frank  Cooper,  Oxford:  Marmalade  and  preserved 
fruits. 

Messrs.  Gillard  &  Co.  Ltd. :  Pickles,  sauces,  and  curried 
meats  in  tins. 

The  very  good  pemmican  we  used  came  entirely  from  J.  D. 
Beauvais  of  Copenhagen,  while  Mr.  Maltwood  of  the  Liebig  Co. 
supplied  Oxo  and  Lemco. 

Messrs.  Shippams,  Ltd.,  of  Chichester  supplied  small  potted 


340  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

meats  and  table  luxuries  for  the  outward  voyage  and  for  the 
base,  and  also  delightful  Christmas  puddings. 

Messrs.  Heinz  &  Co. :  Baked.beans,  tomato  soups,  and  many- 
relishes. 

Messrs.  Reckitt  of  Hull :  Starches  and  cleaning  materials. 

Messrs.  Gonzalez  Byass  &  Co. :  Port  and  sherry,  champagne 
(Heidsieck). 

Messrs.  Simon  Bros,  of  Northumberland  Avenue:  Cham- 
pagne (Moet  &  Chandon),  Courvoisier  cognac,  and  all  liqueurs. 
The  brandy  was  particularly  well  put  up  in  suitable  bottles  for 
sledging. 

Messrs.  Burroughs  &  Wellcome:  The  entire  medical  outfit 
and  photographic  chemicals. 

The  Wolsey  Underwear  Co.  made  all  the  underclothing, 
which  could  not  be  excelled. 

Messrs.  Mandleberg  of  Manchester  were  responsible  for 
our  windproof  clothing,  which  was  in  continuous  use  down  South, 
and  most  satisfactory;   also  the  tent  material. 

The  Jaeger  Co. :  Boots  and  blankets,  and  all  our  mattresses. 

Messrs.  Benjamin  Edgington,  Ltd. :  All  the  tents,  over  which 
they  took  an  immense  amount  of  trouble.  The  tents  were  made 
of  Mandleberg  material,  which  could  not  be  beaten  for  lightness, 
strength,  and  efficiency. 

In  addition  to  the  foregoing  we  were  supplied  with  a  range- 
finder  by  Messrs.  Barr  &  Stroud,  standard  compass  and  sounding 
machine  by  Messrs.  Kelvin  and  James  White,  a  fine  player  piano 
by  the  Broadwood  Co.,  and  two  gramophones  by  the  Gramo- 
phone Co.,  which  brought  a  touch  of  home  into  the  winter  quar- 
ters of  both  parties,  and  often  cheered  both  forecastle  and  ward- 
room of  the  Terra  Nova. 

Captain  Scott,  Lieut.  Evans,  and  Mr.  Wyatt  prepared  sepa- 
rate provision  lists  and  then  met  in  committee  to  decide  finally  on 
the  quantities  and  qualities  of  foodstuffs  to  be  taken. 

It  was  decided  to  add  considerably  to  the  kinds  of  stores 
taken  on  previous  expeditions,  all  believing  in  variety  at  the  base 
stations.  Thus  for  example  we  had  three  hundredweight  of 
fancy  chocolates  for  the  shore  parties,  crystallised  fruits,  sweets, 
ginger,  &c.  Thanks  to  the  magnificent  generosity  of  the  firms 
mentioned  we  practically  obtained  our  provisions  for  nothing, 
and  the  packing  of  the  stores  was  beyond  all  praise.    So  great  was 


INTEREST    IN    EXPEDITION  341 

the  interest  taken  by  the  employees  of  the  provision  firms  that 
during  the  whole  period  of  the  Expedition  we  constantly  came 
across  little  notes  from  the  packers  wishing  us  every  success,  &c. 
In  two  of  Fry's  cases  were  letters  addressed  to  Captain  Scott  and 
the  Second-in-Command,  with  new  two-shilling  pieces,  to  be  re- 
turned if  we  thought  fit  to  the  packer  in  question,  to  hand  down 
to  his  children,  and  so  forth. 

We  were  brought  into  close  touch  with  the  firms  by  visiting 
their  works  and  actually  seeing  the  goods  packed  in  the  '  Ve- 
nesta  '  cases,  which  were,  if  possible,  of  no  greater  gross  weight 
than  60  lbs.  to  facilitate  handling. 

Our  tobacco  was  presented  to  the  Expedition  by  the  Imperial 
Tobacco  Company,  who  also  gave  cigars  and  cigarettes.  They 
took  the  greatest  care  to  preserve  this  very  important  part  of 
our  stores,  and  the  tobacco  supply  was  undoubtedly  the  best  and 
most  generous  that  any  expedition  has  had. 

The  above  mentioned  articles  form  only  a  part  of  the  items 
of  equipment  necessary  to  a  Polar  Expedition  with  such  an  am- 
bitious programme,  and  all  this  was  arranged  before  we  had  col- 
lected our  money  or  purchased  a  ship. 

We  had  to  obtain  by  purchase  or  otherwise  ice-saws,  anchors, 
picks  and  shovels,  hides  for  soles  of  boots,  &c,  instruments  of 
all  descriptions  for  the  various  scientific  purposes,  lamps  and 
lighting  gear,  books  and  mathematical  tables,  a  library,  oils  and 
mineral  grease,  a  colossal  photographic  outfit,  stationery  in  gar- 
gantuan quantities,  an  efficient  sledging  outfit,  harness  and  leather 
goods  from  John  Lecky  &  Co.  for  our  ponies  and  dogs,  motor 
accessories  for  that  part  of  our  transport,  &c,  &c. 

Our  telescopes  were  presented  by  Lieut.-Col.  J.  W.  Gifford  of 
Oakland  Chard.  He  gave  us  a  3K"  equatorial  telescope  for 
which  he  calculated  the  lenses,  and  also  a  light  1  J4"  glass  for  the 
Southern  Journey.     Binoculars  were  provided  by  the  staff. 

Besides  this  we  had  great  quantities  of  fishing  gear,  needles 
and  scissors,  knives,  &c,  from  Milward's  firm,  and  sewing  ma- 
chines from  Singer's. 

The  Welsh  Tin  Plate  and  Metal  Stamping  Co.  provided  the 
majority  of  our  cutlery,  cooking  apparatus  and  mess  traps  free. 

And  then,  lest  anything  should  be  forgotten,  the  Army  and 
Navy  catalogue  was  searched  from  cover  to  cover  by  the  office 
staff  for  anything  that  might  have  been  forgotten.    Captain  Scott 


342  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

once  complained  that  we  had  forgotten  to  bring  an  article  South 
■ — it  was  shaving  soap — but  it  was  produced  forthwith  from  the 
1  annexe,'  as  we  called  the  store  outside  the  big  hut  at  Cape 
Evans. 

Captain  Scott,  assisted  by  Lieutenant  Campbell  and  Mr. 
Gran,  selected  the  sledging  outfit,  fur  gloves,  sleeping-bags,  and 
finneskoe,  and  Gran  personally  chose  every  pair  of  ski  and  in- 
spected every  sledge-runner. 

Mr.  Meares  gave  us  some  very  sound  advice  on  the  prepa- 
ration of  the  animals'  harness  and  accoutrements,  and  the  credit 
of  this  part  of  our  equipment  certainly  belongs  to  him,  while 
Captain  Oates  at  his  own  cost  provided  the  ponies'  forage  from 
New  Zealand. 

A  more  detailed  description  of  the  outfit  will  subsequently  be 
published,  but  the  nature  of  this  narrative  does  not  permit  one 
to  expand  on  the  subject  of  fitting  out. 

The  choice  of  a  ship  was  made  on  September  22,  1909,  and 
that  day  arrangements  were  made  for  the  purchase  of  the  steam- 
ship Terra  Nova,  the  largest  and  strongest  of  the  old  Scottish 
whalers.  Thanks  to  Messrs.  C.  T.  Bowring  &  Co.,  we  were  able 
to  secure  the  ship  before  we  had  raised  a  tenth  of  the  necessary 
funds,  and  she  was  handed  over  to  the  Expedition  on  November 
8,  in  the  West  India  Docks.  The  Terra  Nova  was  purchaesd  for 
the  Expedition  by  Messrs.  David  Bruce  &  Sons  for  £12,500. 
This  firm  subsequently  subscribed  the  amount  of  their  commis- 
sion and  the  transaction  to  the  funds  of  the  British  Antarctic  Ex- 
pedition, and  the  owners  (C.  T.  Bowring  &  Co.)  subscribed  £500 
and  greatly  assisted  Captain  Scott  to  raise  money  in  Liverpool 
for  his  enterprise. 

The  Terra  Nova  was  handed  over  to  the  second-in-command 
to  fit  out  while  Captain  Scott  busied  himself  more  with  the  scien- 
tific programme  and  the  financial  side  of  the  Expedition.  She 
was  docked  by  the  Glengall  Ironworks  Co.,  who  altered  her  ac- 
cording to  the  specification  which  had  been  prepared  to  meet  the 
requirements  of  the  Expedition. 

We  had  her  rigged  as  a  barque  (her  original  rig) ,  and  on  her 
upper  deck  a  large  well-insulated  ice-house  was  erected.  This 
was  to  hold  150  carcases  of  frozen  mutton,  and  owing  to  its 
position,  free  from  the  vicinity  of  iron  and  with  a  good  all-round 
view,  the  top  of  the  ice-house  was  selected  for  mounting  the  stand- 


ALTERATIONS    TO    SHIP  343 

ard  compass  and  the  Lloyd  Creak  pedestal  for  magnetic  observa- 
tions.   We  also  mounted  our  range-finder  here. 

The  galley  was  almost  rebuilt  and  a  new  stove  put  in. 

The  forecastle  was  comfortably  fitted  up  with  mess-tables 
and  lockers.  A  lamp-room  was  built,  with  paraffin  tanks  to  hold 
200  gallons  for  lighting  purposes,  and  storerooms,  instrument 
room,  and  chronometer  room  were  added. 

The  greatest  alteration  was  made  in  the  saloon,  which  was 
enlarged  to  accommodate  twenty-four  officers.  This  was  scarcely 
luxurious  accommodation,  but  it  was  always  kept  clean  and  the 
ventilation  was  good.  Then  a  nice  little  mess  was  built  for  the 
warrant  officers,  of  whom  there  were  to  be  six. 

Two  large  magazines  and  a  clothing  store  were  constructed 
in  the  between  decks — these  particular  spaces  were  zinc  lined  to 
prevent  damp  creeping  in. 

It  was  found  necessary  to  put  a  new  mizzenmast  into  the  ship, 
but  on  the  whole  she  required  alteration  rather  than  repair. 

All  the  blubber  tanks  were  withdrawn  and  the  hold  spaces 
thoroughly  cleaned  and  whitewashed. 

A  good  chart-house  was  built  above  the  wardroom  and  a  large 
covered  chart-table  fitted  up  on  the  bridge. 

The  Glengall  Co.  were  most  anxious  to  meet  us  in  everything 
and  to  push  the  alterations  forward,  and  their  work  was  efficient 
and  not  expensive. 

Our  original  date  of  sailing  was  fixed  for  August  1,  but  by 
the  united  efforts  of  all  concerned  with  the  fitting  out  and  stowing 
of  the  ship  we  halved  the  time  apportioned  for  preparing  the 
vessel,  and  the  Terra  Nova  sailed  on  June  1. 

The  ship  herself  had  to  be  provisioned  and  stored  for  her 
long  voyage,  and  here  again  lists  had  to  be  prepared  to  meet 
every  contingency.  There  were  boatswain's  stores,  wire  hawsers, 
canvas  for  sailmaking,  carpenter's  stores,  cabin  and  domestic 
gear  to  be  provided.  The  engineers  had  to  purchase  their  stores 
together  with  a  blacksmith's  outfit.  There  were  fireworks  for  sig- 
nalling, whale  boats  and  whaling  gear,  flags,  logs,  paint  and  tar, 
and  a  multitude  of  necessities  to  be  thought  of,  selected,  and  not 
paid  for  if  we  could  help  it. 

An  invaluable  collection  of  Polar  literature,  alike  Antarctic 
and  Arctic,  was  made  for  the  expedition  by  Admirals  Sir  Lewis 
Beaumont,   G.C.B.,   and  Sir  Albert  Markham,   K.C.B.,   and  a 


344  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

beautiful  library  in  miniature  was  presented  to  us  by  Mr.  Regi- 
nald Smith. 

When  we  left  London  at  5  p.m.  on  June  1  probably  the  most 
strenuous  part  of  the  Expedition  was  over.  This  may  sound 
strange,  but  the  fitting  out  was  carried  on  under  such  extraordi- 
nary conditions  that  we  never  knew  whether  the  most  trivial  alter- 
ation could  be  permitted  owing  to  the  state  of  our  finances. 

During  the  year  of  preparation  the  personnel  was  chosen. 
We  had  something  like  eight  thousand  volunteers  to  select  from, 
and,  as  one  of  the  leading  daily  papers  *  stated,  '  All  sorts  and 
conditions  of  men  seem  to  have  been  imbued  with  a  desire  to  earn 
Polar  glory.'  One  man  wrote  that  although  he  was  a  foreigner 
he  was  quite  willing  to  become  a  British  subject  if  Captain  Scott 
would  find  him  a  berth.  Of  the  fortunate  men  who  were  finally 
selected  one  may  read  elsewhere  in  this  book,  but  there  were  natu- 
rally very  many  crowded  out  who  were  fit  persons  to  have  accom- 
panied the  Expedition. 

One  of  these  was  Captain  Ninnis,  an  enthusiast  who  would 
have  been  selected  had  not  Captain  L.  E.  G.  Oates  already  been 
chosen.  It  will  be  remembered  that  he  lost  his  life  in  the  Maw- 
son  Expedition  after  proving  himself  to  be  eminently  suitable  for 
Polar  work. 

But  even  the  eight  thousand  volunteers  were  disposed  of 
eventually  and  the  appointments  made.  The  final  selection  was 
a  happy  one,  and  a  vast  amount  of  trouble  was  taken  over  this 
important  matter. 

The  outward  voyage  of  the  Terra  Nova  hardened  the  men 
and  taught  them  a  good  deal.  Lifelong  friendships  were  com- 
menced, and  the  ship  routine  gave  great  opportunities  for  learn- 
ing the  characters  and  abilities  of  the  members  and  for  appreci- 
ating talents  peculiar  to  various  individuals.  The  different 
parties  were  selected  from  observation  made  on  the  long  out- 
ward voyage. 

It  only  remains  to  acknowledge  the  unbounded  hospitality  of 
the  Cardiff  citizens,  with  Mr.  Dan  Radcliffe  at  their  head,  who 
docked  and  coaled  the  ship  for  us,  gave  freely  in  money  and 
kind,  and  made  their  generosity  so  felt  that  Captain  Scott  prom- 
ised that  Cardiff  should  be  the  home  port  of  the  Terra  Nova. 

*   The  Standard,  Sept.  17,  1909. 


EPILOGUE 

The  closing  words  of  this  book  must  be  a  heartfelt  acknowledg- 
ment from  all  concerned  with  Scott's  Last  Expedition,  to  the 
Antarctic  Committee  which  has  laboured  so  long  and  so  disin- 
terestedly to  further  the  interests  of  the  Expedition,  of  those  who 
took  part  in  it,  and  of  those  who  were  left  desolate  by  its  su- 
preme achievement.  That  acknowledgment  is  most  gratefully 
tendered  to  Sir  Archibald  Geikie,  President  of  the  Royal  Society; 
to  Lord  Strathcona,  Lord  Howard  de  Walden,  Lord  Goschen, 
Sir  George  Taubman  Goldie,  Major  Leonard  Darwin,  and 
Mr.  D.  Radcliffe,  who  was  invited  to  join  at  Commander  Evans' 
request;  above  all,  to  Sir  Edgar  Speyer,  who  so  ably  and  gen- 
erously undertook  the  heavy  duties  of  Hon.  Treasurer;  to 
Admiral  Sir  Lewis  Beaumont,  who  gave  unsparingly  of  his 
time  and  invaluable  help;  to  Sir  Clements  Markham,  the  Father 
of  Polar  exploration,  from  whom  Captain  Scott  assuredly  drew 
much  of  his  inspiration  and  encouragement;  and  to  that  close 
friend  of  Captain  Scott,  Mr.  Reginald  Smith,  K.C.  In  New 
Zealand  the  interests  of  the  Expedition  were  admirably  repre- 
sented by  Mr.  J.  J.  Kinsey,  who  became  not  merely  its  official 
representative,  but  the  trusted  friend  so  warmly  mentioned  by 
Captain  Scott  and  Dr.  Wilson. 

All  the  original  members  consented  to  join  the  Committee 
at  Captain  Scott's  personal  request,  and  their  names  were  asso- 
ciated with  his  in  the  collection  of  funds  for  the  equipment  of  the 
Expedition.  Captain  Scott  himself  undertook  all  the  liabilities 
involved;  he  did  not  ask  the  Committee  to  share  in  these,  albeit 
the  Treasurer,  with  his  characteristic  generosity,  gave  him  to 
understand  that  he  would  do  much  to  see  the  venture  through. 
Captain  Scott,  however,  left  a  letter  with  Sir  Lewis  Beaumont 
giving  him  full  authority  to  assume  control  of  affairs  should  ship 
and  party  be  lost.  After  Captain  Scott's  death  the  Committee 
translated  into  action  Captain  Scott's  last  appeal  to  the  nation; 
the  funds  they  raised  were  united  with  the  Lord  Mayor's  Fund, 


346  SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 

with  the  further  aid  of  the  Lord  Mayor,  Lord  Curzon  of  Kedle- 
ston,  President  of  the  Royal  Geographical  Society,  the  Hon. 
Harry  Lawson,  and  Alderman  and  Sheriff  Cooper;  while  Sir 
William  Soulsby,  Secretary  to  the  Lord  Mayor,  was  indefati- 
gable over  the  heavy  business  in  connection  with  the  national 
fund.  These  funds  were  supplemented  by  a  Treasury  grant  for 
the  dependents  of  those  who  had  lost  their  lives  in  the  service  of 
the  country.  Such  was  the  response  of  the  country  and  the  Gov- 
ernment to  the  appeal,  that  Captain  Scott's  dying  wish  has  been 
amply  fulfilled.  The  Expedition  has  discharged  its  liabilities ;  the 
dependents  of  the  dead  are  well  provided  for;  the  scientific  re- 
sults are  to  be  fully  worked  out  and  published  under  the  auspices 
of  the  British  Museum.  His  Majesty  the  King  received  at  Buck- 
ingham Palace  all  the  members  of  the  Expedition  who  were  in 
the  country,  and  conferred  upon  all  the  Antarctic  medal,  while 
officers  and  men  of  the  Royal  Navy  have  had  special  promotion; 
and  the  Second-in-Command,  Commander  Evans,  has  been  given 
the  honour  of  C.B.  The  record  is  one  of  public  munificence  and 
personal  friendship  which,  could  they  but  have  known  it,  would 
have  greatly  lessened  the  last  cares  of  the  Southern  Party  as 
they  awaited  their  lonely  end. 


APPENDIX 


METEOROLOGICAL   LOG 

Kept  by  Lieut.  Bowers  on  the  Winter  Journey. 
Reproduced  from  Mr.  Cherry-Garrard's  Diary 

The  symbols  used  have  the  following  meaning: 


Wind: 

Beaufort  Number. 

Description  of  Wind. 

Velocity,  m.p.h. 

o 

calm 

0 

n 

I  2 
5 

i\ 

light  breeze 

1 10 

ji 

moderate  breeze 

[21 

'\ 

strong  wind 

{27 
1 35 

i] 

gale  forces 

42 

I50 

-I 

storm  forces 

{59 
[68 

12 

hurricane 

75 

Weather: 

b.   blue  sky 

c. 

detached  clouds 

f.   fog 

g- 

gloomy 

m.   mist 

0. 

overcast 

s.   snow 

Time. 

Temperature. 

Wind.          Weather. 

27  June      1. 15  p.m. 

—  14*5  (off  Glacier 
Tongue) 

Breeze(E.)  3-4 

6.0  P.M. 

5 

9.30  P.M. 

-  15 

5 

28  June     7.45  a.m. 

-24-5 

1               b.  c. 

1.30  P.M. 

-  26-5  (Hut  Point) 

1               b.  c. 

8.0  P.M. 

—  44*5  (Barrier) 

At  Barrier  edge  a 

cold  easterly  air  was  flowing 

from  surface  on  to  sea  ice. 

g.IO  P.M. 

-  47 

0                b. 

Minimum 

-56-5 

34? 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


29  June 


30  June 


1  July 


4  July 


5  July 


5  J% 


6  July 


Time. 

9.0  A.M. 
I.O  P.M. 
7.30  P.M. 

Minimum 
10.0  A.M. 
Noon 

2.0  P.M. 
9.0  P.M. 
Minimum 

IO.O  A.M. 
3.O  P.M. 
IO.O  P.M. 

Minimum 


2  July       10.30  A.M. 
4.0  P.M. 


9.15  P.M. 
Minimum 
3  July       1 1.0  A.M. 


5.30  P.M. 

IO.O  P.M. 
7.3O  P.M. 


Minimum 
9.30  A.M. 


Temperature. 

Wind. 

Weather. 

-  49 

1 

b.  c. 

-  5o 

1-2 

b. 

-  50*2 

1 

b. 

-  66 

-  55 

0 

b. 

Enough 

daylight 

for 

relaying 

sledges.      Fc 

marks  visible  in  soft  surface  for  two  hours. 

-  6r6 

1-2 

b.  c. 

-  66 

0 

b. 

-69 

-  66-6 

1 
1 

b. 
b. 

-  60-5 

1 

b. 

-  65-2 

Breeze  during  night,  with  slight  drift. 

-  6o'i  o  b.  c. 

-  60*5  1  b.  c. 
Light  airs  lasting  till  4  p.m.,  when  bank  of  fog 

formed  over  neck  of  peninsula.  Later  this  dis- 
persed to  W. 

-  65  o 
-65 

-  52  o 
Barrier  surface  featureless  without  sastrugi,  as 

heavy  as  sand. 

-  57-2  o 

-  5§'2  o 
Remarkably  brilliant  auroral  display   (see  text, 

p.    9). 

-  65-4 

-  27-5  4  o.  s. 
Weather    very    thick.      No    march.      Overcast 

all  day,  with  steadily  falling  snow.  Wind  3-4, 
with  occasional  gusts  from  E.N.E.  to  S.E.  Min- 
imum: 9.30  a.m.  to  9.30  p.m.,  —  44*5;  9.30  p.m.  to 
9  a.m.,  -  54-6. 


b.  c.  m. 


b.  c. 


b.  c. 
b.  c. 


9.30  P.M. 

-  30                                           30.  S. 

9.0  A.M. 

-  55                                          2                c.  b. 

Sky  clearing;  haze  over  W.   slopes  of  Erebus. 

2.0  P.M. 

-  56-5                                       1                c.  b.  f. 

9.0  P.M. 

—  6o*i  (cloudy)                        0                b.  f. 

Minimum 

-  75*3 

At  6  p.m.   a  fog  bank  worked  over  the  lower 

slopes  of  Erebus. 

9.30  A.M. 

—  70*2                                     0                b. 

9.0  A.M. 

Clear  weather,  with  patches  of  white  haze  lying 

low  in  places. 

BOWERS'    METEOROLOGICAL    LOG 


349 


Time. 
6  July      Noon 
4  P.M. 


5-15  P-M. 


7  July      Midnight 

2  P.M. 
7.30  P.M. 


Minimum 
8  July      1. 1 5  a.m. 

10.30  A.M. 
7.15  P.M. 


Minimum 
9  July       II  A.M. 
1.30  P.M. 


7  P.M. 


Midnight 


Minimum 

10  July      Noon 

II  P.M. 

11  July       10  A.M. 

Noon 
8  P.M. 


Temperature.  Wind.        Weather. 

—  76"8  (cloud  2)  o  b.  m. 

Fog  lying  over  Barrier  to  E.  all  day.  Ross  Island 
clear.  A  bank  of  low  stratus  visible  behind  peaks 
of  Terror  and  Terra  Nova  nearly  all  day,  appar- 
ently almost  stationary. 

—  77  (carefully  checked  by  Wilson) 

—  77*5  (other   thermometer) 

(cloud  3)  o  b.  m. 

minimum  —  7  5' 8 

—  69  o  b.  m. 
Low-lying  mist  (white)  to  N.  and  N.N.W. 

—  68*3  o  b.  m. 

—  55"4  1  f- 

At  2  p.m.  slight  haze.     At  4  p.m.  fog  obscured 
Ross  Island,  working  over  lower  slopes  of  Terror 
from  E.    At  10  p.m.  halo  round  moon. 
-59-8 

—  57*2  1  b.  m.  f. 
At  6.30  a.m.  fog  all  over. 

—  52*3  1  b.  f.  c. 

—  47  of.  m.  b. 

At  7  p.m.  land  obscured  by  thick  fog;  from  1  A.M. 
slight  snow  fell.    Thick  foggy  weather. 

—  36-5 

—  367  2  o.  f. 

—  29*2  o  o.  f. 

At  1.30  p.m.  the  moon  was  invisible,  and  all 
objects  were  obscured  by  thick  fog.  During  after- 
noon march  noticed  slight  difference  in  character 
of  the  surface,  the  snow  having  been  acted  on  by 
wind  more  than  hitherto.  Surface  harder,  with 
occasional  small  sastrugi. 

—  29-5  1  o.  f.  s. 
Thick  foggy  weather,  with  snowy  mist.    Occa- 
sional light  puffs  of  breeze  from  S.W. 

—  27  00.  s.  f. 
Camped  on  finding  ourselves  on  or  about  pressure 

ridges.  Snow  falling.  Nothing  visible.  Some  hours 
after  midnight  commenced  to  blow  strong  from  S. 
or  S.W.  Noise  of  ice  pressure  in  vicinity  of  beneath 
camp. 

—  24 

—  24  6  to  8  o.  s. 

5  to  6  c.  f .  s. 

+  7*8  5  to  9  o.  s. 

5  to  7  o.  s. 

+  6'8  3  to  5  o.  c._ 


35° 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


12  July 


13  July 


Time. 

Temperature. 

Wind. 

Weather. 

6  A.M. 

10 

0.  g.  s. 

IO  A.M. 

+  2.9 

3  to  5 

c.  s. 

O.30  P.M. 

2  to  4 

c. 

7.30  P.M. 

-  2-8 

4  to  8 

c.  b.  s. 

IO  P.M. 

4  to  6 

c.  b.  g.  s. 

4.0  A.M. 

—   I2'2 

2 

b.  c. 

6.0  A.M. 

-   18 

1 

b.  c. 

9.IO  A.M. 

-    22'3 

1 

b.  c. 

3.O  P.M. 

3 

b.  c. 

IO.O  P.M. 

-  28-6 

0 

b.  c. 

Minimum 

-  35 

When  crossing  top  ridges  of  Terror  it  was  found 
that  a  light  breeze  coming  down  the  mountain 
side  struck  along  the  top  of  the  ridge,  and  flowing 
each  way  caused  a  N.E.  breeze  on  one  side  and  a 
S.W.  breeze  on  the  other. 


14  July 

2  A.M. 

3 

0.  c. 

8  A.M. 

-  I7'4 

1 

0.  c.  s. 

3.20  P.M. 

—  24*6 

0-1 

c.  f. 

IO.3O  P.M. 

-  24-5 

3 

0.  f.  s. 

Weather  thick 

and 

threatening. 

Minimum 

-  34' 5 

15  July 

During  nig 

ht  fog  and  snow  obscured 

I  everyth 

ing. 

10.30  A.M. 

—  19*2 

3 

c.  f.  s. 

Weather  foggy, 

but 

clear  sky  overhead. 

4.15  P.M. 

-  13 

4 

c.  f. 

8.15  P.M. 

-  14*5 

1 

b.  c. 

(800  feet  hi 

gh) 

Midnight 

—    I9"2 

0 

b. 

Minimum 

-28-5 

16  July 

8.45  A.M. 

-  24-8 

0 

b. 

5.40  P.M. 

-  25 

3-5 

c.  f.  b. 

Midnight 

-    20'8 

1 

b.  c. 

17  July 

3.0  A.M. 

-  23*3 

0 

0. 

Noon 

-  i9'5 

3 

c.  m. 

6.30  P.M. 

—    22'I 

3 

b.  c. 

18  July 

(Unable  to  continue  igloo.) 

6.0  A.M. 

-  27*3 

4-5 

b.  c. 

9.0  A.M. 

~    26-5 

5 

b.  c. 

4  P.M. 

4-5 

b.  c. 

Minimum 

-  37 

19  July 

3.10  A.M. 

-  3i'5 

0 

b.  c. 

9.30  A.M. 

-  33'2 

0 

b. 

4.30  P.M. 

-  30 

2 

b.  c. 

(Among  pressure 

ridges.) 

20  July 

3.0  A.M. 

-  28-3 
(Completed  igloo.) 

2 

b.  c. 

BOWERS'    METEOROLOGICAL    LOG 


35i 


Time. 
20  July      9.0  A.M. 

S.30  P.M. 
8.0  P.M. 


21  July       8.0  A.M. 

Noon 

7.30  P.M. 

22  July  (Sat.) 

3.0  A.M. 
6.30  A.M. 


A.M. 

23  July      9  a.m. 


24  July 


25  July 


6.30  A.M. 
IO.O  A.M. 


Noon 

6.0  P.M. 

Noon 

2  P.M. 


3  P.M. 
26  July       II  A.M. 


26  July      9  p.m. 

27  July      9  a.m. 

5  P.M. 

9  p.m. 


Minimum 


Temperature.  Wind.        Weather. 

-  27  3  b.  c. 

-  23-3  4  b.  c. 

-  24  6  b.  c. 
(In   pressure   ridges.) 

During  night  wind  increased  to  8,  falling  towards 
6  a.m.   to   5. 

20*4  3  o.  c. 

2  o.  m. 

23*7  1  c.  b. 

Unsettled  weather:  pitched  tent  to  leeward  of  hut. 

Start  of  blizzard:  Friday  afternoon;  Loss  of  tent 
early  morning  Saturday. 

Commenced  blowing  heavily  from  S.,  with  little 
drift. 

9-10  o. 

Heavy  drift  and  wind  in  strong  gusts;  tent  blown 
away. 

Collapse  of  blubber  stove. 

All  day  wind  blowing  with  almost  continuous 
storm  force  —  very  slight  lulls,  followed  rapidly  by 
squalls  of  great  violence.  About  noon  roof  carried 
away.  Storm  continued  with  unabated  fury  all 
day  —  not  much  drift.  11  p.m.  Knoll  visible. 
Loss  of  igloo  roof. 

Finding  the  tent. 

2  c.  b. 

3  c.  b. 
From   midnight   squalls    interspersed    by    short 

lulls  to  9. 

Dull,  cloudy,  and  unsettled  appearance  to  S. 
Slight  to  gentle  breeze  all  day. 

-  12  4  c.  b. 
Start  to  return  to  C.  Evans. 

-  15*3  (breeze  freshening)       4  o.  b. 
Breeze  freshened  to  fresh  gale;  later  to  9,  and 

continued    this    for   about    ten   hours,    easing   up 
towards  morning. 

-  17  (?)  8 

-  21-5  2-4 
Wind  fell  light.     Sky  cleared. 

ridges. 

-  45  o 

-  46*3  0-1 

-  46  o 

-  47  o 
At   9  a.m.    clouds   moving   slowly   over   slopes 

of  Terror  from  N. 

-  49*3 


0.  c. 

b.  c. 
Among  pressure 

b. 
b. 
b. 
b. 

35* 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


28  July 


29  July 


30  July 


3i  July 


Aug. 


Time. 

Temperature. 

Wind. 

Weather. 

8.30  A.M. 

-  47'2 

0 

b. 

3  P.M. 

-  4°' 3 

0 

b.  c. 

8  P.M. 

-38 

3 

b.  c. 

Minimum 

—  46"  1 

5.3O  A.M. 

-  42 

0 

b. 

2.3O  P.M. 

-43'8 

2 

b.  c. 

9  P.M. 

-  45'3 

1 

b.  c. 

Minimum 

-  66-5 

9  A.M. 

-65'3 

0 

b.  c. 

3  P.M. 

-  63*2 

0 

b.  c. 

8.30  P.M. 

-  6r8 

1 

b. 

Minimum 

—  62*9 

9  A.M. 

-  57 

0 

b.  c. 

3  P.M. 

-  43 

1 

b.  c. 

Light  airs 

off  edge  of  Barrier  as 

5  before.    On  ap- 

proaching  Gap  considerable  rise  of 

temperature. 

IO.30  P.M. 

-  27 

0 

b.  c. 

(Hut  Point) 

Minimum 

-27.8 

3.30  A.M. 

-  27*3 

6-7 

b.  c. 

8  A.M. 

-  28 

0 

b.  c. 

During  hours  of  daylight  remarkable  iridescem 

clouds  to  N. 

—  general 

colours  opal. 

5.3O  P.M. 

-  3i 

1 

b. 

(Glacier  Tongue) 

Off  Inaccessible  Island,  northerly  breeze  3, 
arrived  at  Cape  Evans. 


till 


INDEX 


Abbott,  G.  P.,  P.O.,  (i.)  2:  accidents,  (ii.) 
59,  100:  Erebus,  ascent  of,  (ii.)  242: 
fencing  masks  and  foils  manufactured, 
(ii.)  68:  Northern  Party,  duties,  &c, 
with,  (ii.)  53,  65:  water  on  the  knee,  (ii.) 

70 
Acclimatisation:    dogs,  (i.)  239:    men,  (i.) 

241,  268:   ponies,  (i.)  89,  116,  165 

Acetylene  gas  plant:  carbide  consumption, 
(i.)  188,  191 

Adams  Marshall  Mountains,  (i.)  350 

Adare,  Cape:  geological  specimens  from, 
(ii.)  302:  height,  (ii.)  76:  Northern 
Party's  wintering  place,  (ii.)  61,  246: 
penguin  rookery,  (ii.)  63:  scenery,  (ii.) 
63 

Adelie  Penguins.     See  Penguins 

Admiralty  Bay  in  the  Sounds,  survey  of, 
(ii.)  266 

"Afterguard,"  keenness  of  —  navigation 
studies,  App.  19,  436:  outward  voyage, 
(i.)  7,  9,  10,  52,  56:  stokehold  work  on 
homeward  voyage,  (ii.)  278:  —  nick- 
names, (i.)  31,  App.  6,  423.  For  partic- 
ular officers,  see  their  names 

Age:  relation'  to  powers  of  endurance  of 
cold,  &c,  (i.)  257:    Southern  Party,  (i.) 

354 

Ainsley,  Mr.,  (i.)  4 

Air:  humidity  of,  measurement  impossible, 
(i.)  201:  overlying  layers,  reluctance  to 
mix,  (i.)  190:  upper  air  currents,  balloon 
records,  (i.)  172,  173,  176,  184,  259,  262, 
263,  274 

Akaroa,  (ii.)  265 

Albatrosses,  (i.)  13,  ill.  12,  (ii.)  251,  264 

Alcove  Camp,  (ii-)  131,  ill.  132 

Alga,  (ii.)  144 

Alph  River  and  Avenue,  (ii.)  145,  146-7,  ill. 
142,  144,  146 

Amphipods,  (ii.)  168 
VOL.   II— 23 


Amundsen:  blizzards,  freedom  from,  (ii.) 
324:  camp  (Framheim)  at  Bay  of 
Whales,  (ii.)  58:  Campbell's  meeting 
with,  (i.)  130,  (ii.)  58,  246  — plans  not 
affected  by  news,  (i.)  130-1,  297:  chances, 
&c,  speculations  as  to,  (i.)  255,  256,  265, 
297:  —  Northern  Magnetic  Pole  Expe- 
dition, cold  experienced,  (i.)  250:  Pole, 
journey  to — "Black  Flag  Camp,"  (i.) 
374  and  ill.;  cold  expected,  (i.)  376:  date 
of  arrival,  (i.)  376:  route,  (i.)  334:  South 
Pole  mark,  (i.)  376,  ill.  380:  tent  and 
record  found  at  the  Pole,  (i.)  375  and  ill.; 
Terra  Nova,  news  received  on,  (ii.)  265: 
thoroughness  of  work,  (i.)  375 

Anderson,  Mr.,  (i.)  2,  App.  2,  421 

Anderson,  Mr.  G.,  (ii.)  276 

Animals,  draught  animals:  condition  of, 
effect  on  condition  of  men,  (i.)  328.  See 
also  titles  Dogs,  Mules,  and  Ponies 

Antarctic  Committee,  members  and  action 
of,  (ii.)  345,  346 

Antarctic  flying  birds  —  Wilson's  lecture, 
pigmentation,  &c,  (i.)  177 

Antipodes  Islands,  (ii.)  267 

Anton,  value  of:  work,  &c,  (i.)  5,  88,  164, 
183,  263,  308,  (ii.)  155 

Appetites,  (i.)  13,  (ii.)  155 

"Apposed"  glaciers,  (ii.)  136,  290 

Arber,  Dr.  A.  E.  Newell,  (ii.)  331 

Arch  Berg,  (i.)  67,  174,  180,  ill.  68,  74 

Archseocyathus,  (i.)  389,  (ii.)  297 

Archer,  Mr.,  (ii.)  217,  221,  225 

Armadillo  Camp,  (ii.)  141 

Armitage,  Cape,  (i.)  61,  and  note:  pressure 
ridges,  (i.)  101 

Arrival  Bay,  (ii.)  259 

Atkinson,  E.  L.  —  Surgeon  and  Parasitolo- 
gist: bad  foot  on  Depot  Journey,  left 
behind,  (i.)  97  note,  101,  103,  104,  129: 
blubber  stove,  (i.)  21:  cooking,  (i.)  302: 
crevasses,  falls  into,  (i.)  352:  discoveries 
—  bacterium  in  the  snow,  (i.)  187:  para- 


354 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


sitology,  (i.)  35,  92,  184,  214,  262:  — 
Evans,  Lt.,  care  of,  (ii.)  205,  210,  262: 
fish  traps,  catches,  &o,  (i.)  184,  195,  220, 
ill.  186:  frostbitten  hand,  (i.)  237  and 
ill.  232:  lectures  —  parasitology,  (i.) 
204:  scurvy,  (i.)  264:  —  'Last  Year  at 
C.  Evans,'  (ii.)  204-39:  Loading  har- 
poon gun,  ill.  (i.)  14:  lost  in  a  blizzard, 
(i.)  235:  Nelson's  work,  interest  in,  (i.) 
262:  Northern  Party,  attempt  to  relieve, 
(i.)  119,  213-16:  ponies,  care  of,  at  sea, 
(i.)  7,  8:  snow  blindness,  (i.)  69:  South- 
ern Party  —  dog  teams  despatched  to 
meet,  (i.)  406  note,  (ii.)  205,  211:  memo- 
rial cross,  erection  of,  (ii.)  272:  records, 
&c,  charge  of,  (ii.)  123:  search  expedi- 
tion, (ii.)  232  et  seq.  —  See  also  Southern 
Journey,  ad  fin.: — Terra  Nova  left  at 
Oamaru,  (ii.)  276:  work,  (i.)  182  and  ill. 

Atmospheric  electricity  —  work  of  the  Ex- 
pedition, (ii.)  3 11— 13 

Aurora  Australis:  colour,  &c,  (i.)  175,  196: 
displays,  (i.)  175,  196,  216,  224,  227,  (ii.) 
6,  9,  44,  64,  68,  221:  night  watchman  to 
observe,  (i.)  171:  photographs,  failure  to 
obtain,  (i.)  197,  (ii.)  221:  records,  (ii.) 
312:    Simpson's  lecture,  (i.)  178 

Australian  Government  grant,  (ii.)  338 

Avalanche  Bay,  (ii.)  165 


B 


Bacon  quoted,  (i.)  44 

Bacterium  in  the  snow,  (i.)  187 

Bagatelle,  (ii.)  220 

Ballast  work,  organisation,  &c,  (i.)  80-1 

Balleny  Islands,  (ii.)  264,  275 

Balloon  Bight,  disappearance,  (ii.)  58 

Balloons,  investigation  of  upper  air  by,  (i.) 
172,  173,  176,  184,  259,  262,  263,  274,  ill. 
266:    new  systems  tried,  (i.)  271,  274 

Barne  glacier,  ill.  (i.)  90,  174 

Barometric  observations  —  comparative 
tables,  (ii.)  325,  326,  327 

Barrie,  Sir  J.  M.,  Scott's  farewell  letter  to, 
(i.)  411 

Barrier,  ill.  (i.)  54,  56:  berg  calving  from, 
(ii.)  56:  cave  in,  ill.  (ii.)  56:  changes 
observed  by  Northern  Party,  (ii.)  56,  58: 
cold  air  off  edge,  (ii.)  5,  45:  crevasses, 
(ii.)  280:  Discovery  days,  comparison 
with,  (i.)  56,  58:  flotation,  (ii.)  279,  282, 
309:  level,  (i.)  399:  limits,  (ii.)  279,  308: 
movement,  (ii.)  236,  281,  308:  pinnacled 


ice  at  edge,  (ii.)  121:  Pole  route,  (i.)  334, 
358:  ratio  of  submerged  to  visible  ice, 
variation,  (ii.)  279:  Scott's,  Capt.,  lec- 
ture and  discussion  following,  (ii.)  279- 
84:  slope,  curved  ascent  at  edge,  (ii.)  5, 
6,  45,  282:  snow,  deposition  of,  (ii.)  281, 
282,  308:  surface — (i.)  118,  311,  316, 
396  et  seq.,  (ii.)  6,  45:  depth  of  holes 
made  by  ponies'  hooves,  (i.)  330:  false 
crust,  (i.)  324,  328,  330:  snowfall  of 
blizzard,  effect  of,  (i.)  338,  340-1,  342, 
343,  344,  345:  undulations,  (i.)  334:  — 
temperature  and  atmospheric  pressure, 
(i.)  255,  (ii.)  280:  under  surface,  nature 
of,  (i.)  118:  weather,  change  from  spring 
to  summer,  cause  of  suddenness,  (i.)  320: 
weather  made  on,  (i.)  124:  westerly  cur- 
rent, effect  of,  (ii.)  58:  wind  on,  (i.)  311 

'Barrier  shudder,'  (i.)  111,  330,  370,  App. 
13,  426,  (ii.)  7,  11,  43,  136,  177,  236: 
dogs,  effect  on,  (i.)  in,  (ii.)  236 

Barrow,  Cape,  (ii.)  72 

Bathing  on  deck,  (i.)  55 

Bay  of  Islands,  (ii.)  254,  330 

Beacon  sandstone,  (i.)  344,  389,  (ii.)  178, 
180,  297,  302:  conditions  of  deposition, 
(ii.)  298 

Beardmore  Glacier  and  district:  crevasses, 
chasms,  and  pressure,  (i.)  341,  347,  348, 
350-2,  386,  387,  389-91,  HI-  340:  geol- 
ogy, 00  343,  350,  388,  389,  392,  (ii.) 
221,  297,  298,  302:  size  and  scenery,  (i.) 
344:  surface,  (i.)  342,  343,  344,  345,  347, 
348,  351,  393:  Taylor's  lecture,  (i.)  209: 
walls  and  tributary  glaciers,  (i.)  347, 
(ii.)  294 

Beaumont,   Admiral   Sir  L.,   G.C.B.,    (ii.) 

343,  345 

Bellot,  reference  to,  (i.)  203 

Benthos,  (ii.)  329,  333 

Bergs,  (i.)  15,  16,  174,  (ii.)  309  et  seq.,  (i.) 
ill.  10,  290:  see  also  Arch  berg:  Aus- 
tralasian climate,  effect  on,  (ii.)  310: 
buoyancy  —  difference  between  the  two 
types,  (ii.)  64:  calving,  (ii.)  56  and  ill.: 
Castle  berg,  ill.  (i.)  205,  282:  'intru- 
sions' of  blue  ice,  (i.)  16:  larder  in 
stranded  berg  —  berg  broken  up,  (ii.)  63 : 
pack,  bergs  in,  (i.)  26,  30,  33,  34,  ill.  23: 
size,  (ii.)  276:  Terra  Nova's  adventures 
in  McMurdo  Sound,  (ii.)  273 :  two  forms, 
(ii.)  309;    weathering  in  winter,  (i.)  219 

Bernacchi,  Cape  —  copper  ore  found,  (i.) 
282 


INDEX 


355 


Bicycling  —  Taylor's  run,  (i.)  292 
Biology:    collecting  specimens,  methods  of 

—  kite,  tow-net  dropped  from,  (ii.)  336: 
sea  ice,  collecting  through,  (ii.)  336:  — 
hut,  work-room  at,  (i.)  162:  Nelson's 
lectures,  (i.)  199,  280:  summary  of  work 
done —  Terra  Nova,  (ii.)  328-34:  winter 
quarters,  (ii.)  335—7 

Bird,  Cape,  (i.)  59,  ill.  60 

'Birdie.'    See  Bowers 

Birds,  (i.)  13,  16,  17,  31,  (ii.)  251,  265: 
dearth  of,  on  homeward  voyage,  (ii.)  277: 
Wilson's  lecture  on  Antarctic  flying 
birds,  (i.)  177.  For  particular  birds,  see 
their  names 

Biscuits,  choice  of,  (ii.)  164 

'Black  Flag  Camp,'  (i.)  374  and  ill. 

Blizzards,  ill.,  (i.)  145,  171,  294,  322,  328: 
cause,  (ii.)  324-5:  clothing  for,  (i.)  268: 
conditions  created  by,  (i.)  240:  discom- 
fort of,  (i.)  335,  336:  ice  crack,  effect  on, 
(i.)  245:  intensity,  (ii.)  324  —  refer  also 
to  Wind,  force  of:  —  local  winds,  (ii.) 
319,  324:  marching  in,  (i.)  79,  284,  (ii.) 
102,  107,  155,  170-2,  184,  189,  198:  mules 
in,  (ii.)  222:  number  recorded  at  Cape 
Evans,  (ii.)  323:  ponies,  effect  on,  (i.) 
112-13,  129,  132,  133,  314,  315:   signs  of, 

—  (i.)  229:  David's,  Prof.,  paper,  (i.) 
255:  —  Simpson's  theories  of,  (i.)  213, 
229,  232,  256:  snow  crusts,  seasonal 
deposition  of,  (i.)  118:  suddenness,  (i.) 
203,  206,  232,  235,  246,  (ii.)  325  and  ill.: 
summary  of  observations,  (ii.)  318-25. 
See  also  names  of  places  and  expeditions 

Blubber  as  food,  (ii.)  86:    ponies  (i.)  269 
Blubber  lamps,  (i.)  146,  154,  230,  (ii.)  92 
Blubber  stoves,  use  of,   (i.)  21,   139,  140, 
142,  223,  ill.  238,  305,  (ii.)  92,  166:  con- 
struction and  working,  (i.)  223:    failure 
on  Winter  Journey,  (ii.)  28,  30,  32:  high 
wind,    useless    in,    (ii.)     189:     Levick's 
'Complex,'  (ii.)  97 
Blue  glacier,  (ii.)  138,  139:  change  in  com- 
plexion, (ii.)  197 
Bluff  Camp,  (i.)  116,  (ii.)  236 
Bonney,  Lake,  (i.)  229,  (ii.)  290 
Books  for  the  Expedition,  (ii.)  343:    sledg- 
ing literature,  (ii.)  94,  95,  136,  170,  187 
Boomerang  Glacier,  (ii.)  78,  79-80 
Borchgrevink  —  huts,  &c,   (ii.)  61,  66 
Botany  Bay,  (ii.)  166 
Bottle-glass  ice,  (ii.)  140,  178 
Bowers,  Lieut.  H.  R.,  ill.  (i.)  252:    ablu- 


tions in  the  hut,  (i.)  221:  bathing  on 
deck,  (i.)  55:  biological  knowledge,  dis- 
play, (i.)  218:  breaking  trail  for  last 
ponies,  (i.)  339:  cold,  —  endurance  of, 
(i.)  117,  (ii.)  49,  271:  frostbitten  at  last, 
(i.)  119,  195:  —  crevasse,  fall  into,  pres- 
ence of  mind,  (ii.)  40-1:  depot-laying 
journey,  (i.)  97  note:  endurance  and 
hardihood  —  Bowers  the  untiring,  (i.) 
286,  367,  368,  371,  373,  374,  378,  381, 
386,  403,  (ii.)  38:  geological  work,  (i.) 
388:  humour,  (i.)  200:  lectures  —  polar 
clothing,  (i.)  277:  sledging  diets,  (i.)  200: 
—  pack,  steering  in,  (i.)  48:  pony  acci- 
dent, (i;)  134,  139,  App.  14,  428:  practi- 
cal genius,  (i.)  181:  Rennick,  exchange 
with,  for  landing  party,  (i.)  92,  App.  11, 
425:  sharp  eyes,  (i.)  381,  398:  ski,  lack 
of  skill  with,  (i.)  399:  sleeping-bag,  man- 
agement of,  (i.)  254,  (ii.)  42,  49:  snow 
blindness,  (i.)  392:  Southern  Party  — 
member  of,  (i.)  340  note:  death  on  return 
journey,  (i.)  410:  —  stores  officer,  work 
as,  (i.)  1,  10,  12,  71,75,  241:  survey  work, 
(i.)  351:  tent  downhaul,  (i.)  371,  (ii.) 
38:  thermometer  screens,  (i.)  184,  185, 
196,  ill.  221:  transport  officer,  value 
as,  (i.)  297:  unselfishness  —  Cherry- 
Garrard's  tribute,  (ii.)  38,  49:  value  of 
(i.)  75,  80,  88,  282,  298,  353,  372,  398, 
(ii.)  8,  32,  271:  Victor's  end,  grief  for, 
(i.)  331:  Winter  Journey  —  meteorologi- 
cal record,  &c,  (ii.)  1  et  seq.,  App.  347, 
ill.  2,  6 
Bowers,   Mrs.,   Scott's   farewell  letter  to, 

(i-)  4ii 

Bowring,  Messrs.  C.  T.  &  Co.,  (ii.)  342 
Breadmaking,  automatic  device,  (i.)  163 
Bridgeman,    Sir    F.    C,    Scott's    farewell 

letter  to,  (i.)  413 
Brissenden,  death  of,  (ii.)  266,  270 
Browning,     F.     V.,     P.O.  —  member     of 

Northern   Party,    (ii.)  53,  ill.  94:    alarm 

clock  invention,  (ii.)  68:  duties,  (ii.)  65: 

frostbite,  (ii.)  101:  illness,  (ii.)  103  et  seq., 

118,  120 
'Browning  the  boots,'  (ii.)  139 
Bruce,  Lieut.  Wilfred,  (i.)  18,  22,  ill.  (ii.) 

256:    snow  blindness,  (i.)  69:   zoological 

work,  (ii.)  252 
Bruce,  Messrs.  D.  &  Sons,  (ii.)  342 
Brush,   use  of,  on  sledging  journeys,   (ii.) 

3>  16,  154 
Buckle  Island,  (ii.)  264 


3$6 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


Buckley,  Mt.,  geological  specimens   from, 

(i.)  389,  (ii.)  300 
Burmah,  Ponting's  lecture  on,  (i.)  186 
Butter  Point,  (ii.)  124:    depot  blown  over, 

(ii.)  196:  seals  off,  (ii.)  119:  surface,  (ii.) 

138,  156 


Cairns  —  value  on  the  march,  (i.)  319 

Campbell,  Lieutenant  V.  L.  A.:  blizzard, 
sledging  in,  (i.)  79:  frostbites,  (ii.)  103: 
illness,  (ii.)  113,  115:  landing  work,  (i.) 
63 :  Nimrod,  hut  visit  to,  (i.)  86,  App.  IO. 
425:  return,  94:  Northern  Party,  narra- 
tive of,  (ii.)  54-123,  ill.  66,  68:  Royds, 
Cape,  trip  to,  (i.)  82:  ponies  cancelled, 
(i.)  82:  sledging  outfit,  assistance  in 
selecting,  (ii.)  342:  snow  blindness,  (ii.) 
74,  78,  80,  84:  storm  at  sea,  work  after, 
(i.)   10,   12 

Campbell  Island  —  visit  abandoned,  (i.)  7 

Campbell's  Party.    See  Northern  Party 

Capes  and  mountains.     See  their  names 

Carbide  consumption,  (i.)  188,  191 

Cardiff  hospitality,  (ii.)  344 

Castle  Berg,  ill.,  (i.)  205,  282 

Cathedral  Rocks,  (i.)  282:  Western  Geo- 
logical Party  depot,  (ii.)  129 

Central  News  agreement,  (i.)  4 

Cephalodiscus,  (ii.)  333 

Chad,  Lake,  (ii.)  133 

Chanties,  (i.)  40 

Charcot,  Dr.  —  experiments  with  motor 
sledges  on  ice,  (i.)  304  note 

Charm  of  Life  in  the  Antarctic,  (ii.)  125 

Cheetham,  A.  B.  —  Boatswain,  (i.)  14,  22; 
ill.  14:   rat-catching,  (ii.)  267 

Cherry-Garrard,  A.  —  Assistant  Zoologist, 
ill.  (i.)  292:  breaking  trail  on  Southern 
Journey,  (i.)  338:  cooking,  (i.)  123: 
depot-laying  journey,  (i.)  97  note:  des- 
tiny, sense  of,  Winter  Journey,  (ii.)  41: 
diaries,  value  of,  (ii.)  204:  dog  accident, 
(i.)  125,  127:  dog  team  sent  to  meet 
Scott,  charge  of,  (i.)  406  note,  (ii.)  205,  — 
condition  on  return,  (ii.)  209,  210:  frost- 
bites, (i.)  119,  (ii.)  6,  8,  37:  geological 
work,  (ii.)  231:  glacier  march,  (i.) 
346:  Hut  Point,  left  in  charge  of  dogs 
at,  March  1912,  (ii.)  212:  musician,  (i.) 
214:  ornithological  and  zoological  work 
—  second  winter,  (ii.)  217:  pony  acci- 
dent, (i.)  135:  short  sight,  (ii.)  2,  4,  7, 
207:    South  Polar  Times,  editor  of,  (i.) 


228,  280,  (ii.)  217,  222:  value  of  —  work, 
(i.)   117,  182,  185,  257,  (ii.)  8:    Winter 
Journey,  ill.  (ii.)  2,  46  —  extracts  from 
diary,  (ii.)  2  et  seq. 
Chess,  (i.)  242:   under  difficulties,  (ii.)  178, 

187 

Chill  on  sunburn,  (i.)  349 

China  —  Ponting's  lecture,  (i.)  279 

Christmas  Day:  in  the  pack,  (i.)  38,  39: 
Summit  Journey,  (i.)  357-8:  Western 
Party  at  Granite  Harbour,  (ii.)  175 

Chronometer,  variation  in  rate  during 
second  year,  (ii.)  312 

Cinematograph  work,  (i.)  4,  287,  ill.  76, 
311,  (ii.)  265 

Clear,  Lake,  (ii.)  335 

Cleveland  Glacier,  (ii.)  293 

Clifford,  Sir  George,  (i.)  4 

Clissold,  T.:  cook,  ill.,  (i.)  186:  accident 
while  posing  for  Ponting,  (i.)  292,  295, 
296,  cooking,  success  and  ingenuity,  (i.) 
88,  92,  163:  dog  team,  success  with,  (i.) 
261 

Clothing  and  equipment:  blizzards  — 
wind  clothes  a  necessity,  (i.)  268:  Bowers' 
lecture,  (i.)  277:  Crozier  Journey,  experi- 
ment, (i.)  224,  254:  excellence  of,  (i.) 
356,  (ii.)  50:  Scott's  affection  for  uni- 
form overcoat,  (i.)  268:  small  amount  of 
clothing  worn,  (i.)  142.  For  particular 
articles,  see  their  names. 

Cloudmaker  Mountain,  (i.)  344,  348,  ill. 
390:   geological  specimens  from,  (ii.)  221 

Coal:  amount  taken,  (i.)  3,  6:  consump- 
tion —  Northern  Party's  landing  at  Cape 
Adare,  reason  for,  (ii.)  61:  outward  voy- 
age, (i.)  5,  14:  pack,  delay  in,  (i.)  33,  35, 
38,  47,  49:  return  journey  —  consump- 
tion in  pack,  (ii.)  269:  winter  quarters, 
0-)  231 

Coal  deposits  —  Beardmore  district,  (i.) 
389,  (ii.)  298:   gondola  ridge,  (ii.)  179 

Cocoa  v.  tea.,  (i.)  201,  (ii.)  164 

Colbeck,  Cape,  (ii.)  56 

Cold:  illusion,  (i.)  239:  sensation  of,  (i.) 
201:  sensibility  —  relation  to  age,  (i.) 
257.    Refer  also  to  Temperature 

Colour  photography  —  Scott's  attempts, 
(i.)  281:    unsatisfactory  results,  (i.)  173 

Commonwealth  Range,  (i.)  344:    banding, 

(i-)  344 
Compass    readings    on    Koettlitz    Glacier, 

(ii.)  145 
Cones  on  the  ramp,  (i.)  271,  275 


INDEX 


357 


Cooks  and  their  cooking.  See  names  of 
Men  and  Expeditions. 

Copper  ore  at  Cape  Bernacchi,  (i.)  282 

'Coral  reef  structure  —  Lower  Ferrar 
Glacier,  (ii.)  128 

Corner  Camp,  (i.)  no,  in  et  seq.,  141,  286, 
311,  (ii.)  201 

Corner  Glacier,  (ii.)  82-3 

Coronas,  rainbows,  halos,  and  auroras  — 
Simpson's  lecture,  (i.)  178  and  ill. 

Coulman  Island,  (i.)  55 

Crampons  —  new  pattern,  (i.)  224,  249, 
254,  3SO,  392,  ill.  228,  (ii.)  24 

Crean,T.,P.O.  ill.  (i.)  240,355:  Depot  Jour- 
ney —  left  behind  with  Atkinson,  (i.)  97 
note,  104:  Evans',  Lieut.,  breakdown  — 
♦  walk  in  quest  of  relief,  (i.)  App.  24,  438, 
(ii.)  204:  pony  accident  —  going  for 
help,  (i.)  134:  App.  14,  429:  rabbit  — 
birth  of  family,  (i.)  39:  Southern  Party, 
parting  from,  (i.)  364:  value  of — work, 
&c,  (i.)  91,  168,  183,  299,  362,  (ii.)  217, 
219 

Crevasses:  accidents,  falls,  &c,  see  names 
of  men  and  expeditions:  drawback  to 
sledge  travelling  on  glaciers,  (ii.)  287: 
edges  of,  (i.)  355,  356:  pits  or  whirls,  (i.) 
35$,  359 :  re-cemented,  ill.  (ii.)  78: 
snow  bridges,  ill.  (i.)  174,  (ii.)  107,  Hi: 
temperature,  (i.)  App.  13A,  426,  (ii.) 
280:  —  method  of  taking,  (ii.)  284 

Crozier,  Cape,  ill.  (i.)  54:  cliffs,  &c,  descrip- 
tion, (i.)  57:  Emperor  penguin  rookery, 
(i.)  58:  landing  —  unsuccessful  attempt, 
(i.)  56-8,  App.  8,  423:  pressure  ridges 
continued  in  waves  on  Barrier,  (i.)  107, 
113,  127:  running  survey  —  programme, 
(i.)  59:  station,  advantages  and  disad- 
vantages as,  (i.)  12-13,  58-  Winter 
Journey,  see  that  title 

Cuff  Cape,  (ii.)  175 

Curzon  of  Kedleston,  Lord,  (ii.)  346 

Current:  barrier  ice,  effect  on,  (ii.)  58: 
measurement  —  meter,  (i.)  24,  —  vane 
manufactured  by  Day,  (i.)  233:  pack, 
current  in  —  summary,  (i.)  38:  sea  ice, 
effect  on  formation  of,  (ii.)  94 

Cwms,  (ii.)  143,  177:  evolution  of,  (ii.)  293 


Dailey  Isles,  (ii.)  147 
Darwin,  Mount,   (i.)   352,  354,   387, 
depot,  (i.)  352,  387 


David  Glacier,  (ii.)  109 

David,  Professor  T.  W.  E.,  (ii.)  117:  bliz- 
zard, signs  of,  (i.)  255:  Drygalski  Ice 
Tongue,  (ii.)  97:  Erebus,  ascent  of,  (ii.) 
240,  244:  Nansen  Glacier,  movement  of, 
(ii.)  282:  route,  (ii.)  Ill,  114:  specimens, 
&c,  depoted,  collection  of,  by  Northern 
Party,  (ii.)  116:  snow  crusts,  seasonal 
deposition  of,  (i.)  118:  work  of,  (ii.) 
300 

Davies,  F.  E.  C,  Leading  Shipwright  — 
work,  &c,  (i.)  2,  (ii.)  61,  252 

Davis,  Captain,  of  the  Nimrod,  (ii.)  277 

Day,  B.  C,  Motor  Engineer  —  work,  &c, 
(i.)  64,  90,  92:  bicycle-wheel  carriages 
(go-cart),  (i.)  184,  197:  current  vane,  (i.) 
233:  faith  in  motor  sledges,  (i.)  92,  279, 
288:  lecture  on  motor  sledge,  (i.)  222: 
mechanical  skill,  (i.)  163:  sketching 
talent,  (i.)  34:  Southern  Journey,  return 
from,  (i.)  326:   tide  gauge,  (i.)  203,  232 

Debenham,  Frank  —  Geologist,  ill.  (i.)  264: 
barrier  problems,  (ii.)  284:  cooking, 
(i.)  142,  (ii.)  163:  endurance,  (ii.)  161: 
Erebus,  ascent  of,  (ii.)  240,  241,  242: 
football  knee  and  its  consequences,  (i.) 
300,  306,  (ii.)  153,  225:  geological 
history  of  South  Victoria  Land,  (ii.) 
295-300:  geological  journeys  of  the 
Expedition,  (ii.)  301-2:  Granite  Har- 
bour geological  expedition,  —  (ii.)  152 
et  seq.:  survey  work,  (ii.)  157:  —  Hut 
Point,  winter  visit  to,  (i.)  212,  216: 
lectures  —  geology,  (i.)  187:  general 
geology,  (i.)  279:  lantern  lecture,  Mid- 
winter Day,  1912,  (ii.)  222,  223:  volca- 
noes, (i.)  219:  —  photographs  taken,  (i.) 
185:  school  friendship  with  Taylor,  (ii.) 
125:  sketching  talent,  (i.)  34:  sledging, 
experience  in,  (ii.)  125:  value  of  work, 
&c,  (i.)  181,  287,  (ii.)  217,  220,  231 

Demetri  Depot,  (ii.)  231,  234 

Demetri  Gerof,  ill.  (i.)  277,  296,  305,  (ii.) 
216:  Southern  Party,  journey  to  meet, 
(i.)  406  note,  —  snowed  up,  (ii.)  207, 
208,  209,  210:  —  relief  of  Lieut.  Evans 
and  Lashly,  (ii.)  205:  spilt  by  dogs,  (i.) 
276:  value  of  —  work,  &c,  (i.)  88,  165, 
263,  287,  303 

Demetri's  Peak,  (ii.)  240 

Dennistoun,  Mr.  J.  —  care  of  mules,  (ii.) 
255,  260 

Depot  Island  —  charted  a  point  in  1902, 
(ii.)  116 


358 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


Depot  laying  —  Southern  (Autumn)  or 
'Western'  Journey,  —  (i.)  43,  and  note; 
blizzards,  (i.)  in,  117,  132:    equipment 

—  no  material  saving  possible,  (i.)  108-9: 
frostbites,  (i.)  119,  121:  last  journey  to 
Corner  Camp,  (i.)  141:  return,  146: 
loads  for  dogs  and  ponies,  (i.)  100,  103: 
march,  order  of,  (i.)  109,  no:  members 
of  party,  (i.)  97  note;  night  marching,  (i.) 
105,  no,  129:  plans,  (i.)  103:  rations, 
(i.)  io^:  return,  (i.)  116;  ill.  166:  selec- 
tion of  party,  (i.)  81:  App.  9,  424:  sum- 
mary of  marches,  (i.)  128 

Southern  (Spring)  Journeys,  (i.)  276, 
278,  286,  294,  295,  296,  302,  (ii.)  199; 
blizzards,  (ii.)  200-1;  distances  marched 

—  table,  (ii.)  203 :  long  march  on  re- 
turn, (ii.)  202:  low  temperatures,  (ii.) 
200  et  seq. 

Depots   for  future  expeditions,    (ii.)   272, 

273,  f75 

Desolation  Camp,  (i.)  397 

Devil's  Punch  Bowl  and  Devil's  Thumb, 
(ii.)  175  and  ill.,  170 

Diary-keeping,  (i.)  214 

Diatoms,  (ii.)  259,  268 

Dickason,  H.,  A.B.:  cooking,  (ii.)  66: 
economy  in  handling  primus,  (ii.)  106: 
Northern  Journey  —  duties,  &c,  (ii.) 
53,  66:  illness,  (ii.)  103, 104, 106, 107,  108, 
no,  115 

Dirt  Bands,  (i.)  86 

Disappointment,  Cape  —  heavy  sledging 
in  new  snow,  ill.  (ii.)  162 

Discovery  Hut,  ill.,  (i.)  277,  305:  condi- 
tion of,  (i.)  83,  100:  month  spent  at,  (i.) 
139  et  seq. 

Distortion  of  moon  and  planets,  (i.)  246 

Dogs:  at  sea,  (i.)  3,  6,  11,  15,  (ii.)  257,  276: 
Barrier  shudder,  effect  of,  (i.)  m,  (ii.) 
236:  condition,  behaviour,  &c,  (i.)  89, 
148,   151,   168,  241,  261,  276,   (ii.)  229: 

—  coats,  improvement  of,  (i.)  239:  im- 
provement, (i.)  187:  refer  also  to  sub- 
heading Work:  —  crevasse  accidents, 
(i.)  124  et  seq.,  143,  App.  13A,  426,  (ii.) 
231:  'Czigane,'  (i.)  144,  296:  'Deek,' 
(i.)  151,  292:  distances  covered  —  Hut 
Point  from  Cape  Evans  and  back  in  a 
day,  (ii.)  221:  refer  also  to  sub-heading 
Work:    driving  and  drivers,  (i.)  80,  97, 

100,  128,  261,  App.  12,  425,  (ii-)  199: 
food,  (i.)  3:    rations  on  the  march,  (i.) 

101,  127,    128:  —  friendliness,    develop- 


ment of,  (i.)  148,  191,  (ii.)  221:  'Hohol,' 
(i.)  144:  hospital,  (i.)  165,  (ii.)  219: 
hunger  and  habits,  (i.)  123:  hunting 
instinct,  (i.)  99,  in,  202,  233,  App.  12, 

425,  App.  13,  426,  (ii.)  234:  interest  on 
march,  need  for,  (i.)  in,  330,  (ii.)  235, 
236:  'Julick,'  (i.)  247,  249,  271,  272: 
'Kasoi,'  (ii.)  234:  'Krisravitsa,'  (i.)  144, 
ill.  8:^  landing,  (i.)  63:  'Lappa,'  (i.)  145: 
'Lassie's'  family,  (i.)  262,  263:  latent 
savagery,  (i.)  109:  leaders,  change  of, 
(i.)  115,  123:  list  of  dogs  and  their 
donors,  (i.)  App.  I,  419-21:  loads,  (i.) 
101,  103,  340,  (ii.)  233 :  losses  and  deaths, 
(i.)  10,  143,  157,  159,  160,  (ii.)  221,  228: 

—  lost  dog,  (i.)  247,  249:  return  of  lost 
dogs,  (i.)  216,  271,  272:  unexplained  ill- 
ness and  deaths,  (i.)  75,  78,  157,  292,  296: 

—  'Mukaka,'  (i.)  71,  216:  App.  13,  426: 
'Noogis'   ('Nugis'),    (i.)   261,  App.    13, 

426,  (ii.)  228:  'Osman,'  (i.)  11,  15,  109, 
115,  123,  124,  144,  ill.  274:  pack,  sledg- 
ing on,  (i.)  25:  penguins  and  dogs,  (i.) 
63:  'Rabchick,'  (i.)  115,  168:  running 
loose,  (i.)  143,  145:  shelter  needed  in  bad 
weather,  (i.)  143,  145:  Siberian  dogs 
from  Vladivostok,  (ii.)  217,  255,  260: 
skuas  and  dogs,  (i.)  64:  slackness,  cure 
for,  (ii.)  234:  snow  blindness,  (i.)  78: 
'Stareek,'  (i.)  App.  12,  425,  (ii.)  229,  ill. 
(i.)  8:  'Vaida,'  (i.)  168,  191,  202,  (ii.) 
221,  ill.  (i.)  8:  work,  power  of,  work  ac- 
complished, condition  and  conduct  on 
the  march,  &c,  ill.  (i.)  296:  Depot  Jour- 
ney, (i.)  102,  109,  in,  113,  123:  dis- 
trust of,  (i.)  142,  185,  191:  excitement 
on  Southern  road,  (i.)  97:  landing,  (i.) 
75:  Southern  Journey,  value  on,  (i.) 
318,  323,  329,  330,  332,  334,  338,  339: 
Southern  Party,  teams  sent  to  meet,  (ii.) 
210 

Dolerite  sill,  (i.)  325,  (ii.)  179,  299 

Drake,  F.  R.  H.  —  Secretary  and  Meteorol- 
ogist in  Ship,  (ii.)  252,  338:  return  home, 
(ii.)  265 

Drayton,  quoted,  (i.)  44 

Drygalski  Barrier:   ice  tongue,  (ii.)  97,  ill 

—  width,  (ii.)  307:   pack  off,  (ii).  258 
Dry  Valley,  (ii.)  130  et  seq.,  288  et  seq.,  ill. 

194 
Dugdale  Glacier,  (ii.)  60  and  ill. 
Duke  of  York  Island,  (ii.)  69 
Dunlop  Island,  (i.)  283,  (ii.)  118,  159,  193 
Dust  Strata  in  ice,  (i.)  175 


INDEX 


359 


Earth  shadows  on  clouds,  (ii.)   199,  228, 

ill.  200 
Eastern  Party.    See  Northern  Party- 
Eclipse  of  the  moon,  (ii.)  230 
Egerton,  Sir  G.  le  C,  Scott's  farewell  letter 

to,  (i.)  413 
Eiderdown    sleeping-bags    —    temporary 

value,    &c,    (i.)    223,    (ii.)    19,    38,   42, 

200 
Electrical  instruments,  (i.)  191-2 
Elizabeth,  Mt.  —  banding,  (i.)  344 
Emperor  penguins.    See  Penguins 
England,  Mt.,  (ii.)  177,  293,  ill.  184 
Erebus     Glacier     Tongue.       See     Glacier 

Tongue 
Erebus,   Mt.,    ill.    (i.)    60,    190,    290,    (ii.) 

42,    active    crater,  (ii.)    242,  —  eruption 

—  Gran's   adventures,    (ii.)    244  et  seq.: 

—  ascent  of  —  Erebus  party,  (ii.)  240-5, 
302,  ill.  242:  choice  of  route,  (ii.)  240, 
241:  final  ascent,  party  chosen  for,  (ii.) 
242:  highest  camp,  (ii.)  242,  ill.  248:  — 
explosion  crater,  remains  of,  ill.  (ii.)  242: 
geology,  (ii.)  241,  243,  245 :  —  depoted 
specimens  embarked,  (ii.)  272:  —  Hoop- 
er's Shoulder,  southern  nunatak,  (ii.)  245: 
old  crater,  (ii.)  240,  241,  343,  ill.  246: 
panorama  of  mountain  and  glaciers,  ill. 
(i.)  284:  shadow  on  clouds,  (ii.)  199,  ill. 
200:  sketch  map,  ill.  (ii.)  244:  slopes, 
ill.  (ii.)  232:  summit,  (ii.)  343,  ill. 
(i.)  254,  (ii.)  356:  survey,  (ii.)  240,  241, 
242:  temperature  and  winds,  (ii.)  242: 
whalebacked  clouds  over,  ill.  (i.)  190 

Euphausia,  (i.)  31,  45 
Evans,  Cape,  ill.  (i.)  60,  (ii.)  331:  blizzards, 
(i.)  213,  220,  246,  (ii.)  219,  222,  226,  265, 

—  number  recorded,  (ii.)  323;  six  days, 
(i.)  240:  —  crossing,  route  for,  (i.)  80: 
depot  left  for  future  expeditions,  (ii.) 
272:  geology,  (i.)  62,  219:  scenery,  (i.) 
62,  189,  216:  station,  chosen  as,  (i.)  62: 
winter  quarters,  see  that  title,  and  refer 
also  to  title  Hut 

Evans  Coves  —  exploration  of,  (ii.)  85 : 
explorations  from,  (ii.)  76  et  seq. 

Evans,  Lieut.  E.  R.  G.  R.  ('Teddie'), 
ill.  (i.)  20,  78,  316:  C.B.  conferred  on, 
(ii.)  346:  crevasse,  fall  into,  (i.)  352: 
Depot  Journey,  Autumn,  (i.)  97  note,  115, 
123:  Depot  Journey,  Spring,  (i.)  276, 
278,  286,  (ii.)  199  et  seq.,  table  of  marches, 


(ii.)  203:  dog  driving,  (i.)  97:  lecture  on 
surveying,  (i.)  215:  Motor  Party,  jour- 
ney with,  (i.)  303,  306:  return  to  Eng- 
land, (ii.)  265 

Southern  Journey  —  rate  of  progress, 
(i.)  320:  Southern  Journey  return,  (i.) 
398,  App.  24,  438:  breakdown  from 
scurvy,  (ii.)  205:  removal  on  board  ship, 
(ii.)  210,  263:  return  to  C.  Evans  — 
Shore  Party's  relief,  (ii.)  272 

Survey  work,  (i.)  287,  295,  351,  358, 
ill.  (ii.)  202:  value  of — work,  &c,  (i.) 
10,  30,  181,  299 
Evans,  Edgar,  P.O.,  (i.)  2,  ill.  232,  240, 
394:  artificer,  work  as,  (i.)  214, — cram- 
pons and  ski  shoes,  (i.)  234,  239,  344, 
350:  pony  snowshoes,  (i.)  261,  338:  tent 
lining,  (i.)  223;  see  also  sub-heading 
Sledgemaster:  'clove-hitch  knot'  inci- 
dent, (ii.)  141:  danger  slope,  caution  on, 
(ii.)  151:  endurance  and  vigour,  (i.)  286 
— 'A  tower  of  strength,'  (i.)  341:  fossils, 
his  name  for,  (ii.)  179:  humour,  (ii.) 
134,  138:  literary  tastes,  (ii.)  136:  motor 
sledges,  opinion  on,  (i.)  305:  sledgemaster 
— mending,  making,  packing  sledges,  &c. 

Southern  Journey,  (i.)  90,  91,  183,  362, 
364;  Western  Geological  Journey,  (ii.) 
125,  142:  Southern  Journey — accident  to 
hand  and  signs  of  failure,  (i.)  367,  379, 
380;  crevasse,  fall  into,  and  the  effects, 
(i.)    386    et   seq.,   392,    393;    death,    (i.) 

394 

Storekeeper,  ways  as,  (i.)  241:  value 
of,  (i.)  141,  282,  362,  368,  (ii.)  271 
Evans,  Mrs.,  (i.)  5 
Evolution — Lillie's  lectures,  (ii.)  253 
Expedition:  activity,  (i.)  180:  diversity  of 
talent  and  experience,  (i.)  174:  general 
efficiency,  (i.)  278:  homeward-bound 
members  embarking  at  Cape  Evans, 
(ii.)  264:  main  party  after  winter  of  191 1, 
ill.  (i.)  280:  personal  sketches,  (i.)  297-9: 
scientific  value,  (i.)  280:  spirit  of — 'After- 
guard,' keenness  at  sea,  &c,  (i.)  7,  9,  10, 
52,  56,  App.  19,  436,  (ii.)  278;  general 
spirit — harmonious  relations,  loyalty  and 
cheerfulness,  (i.)  12,  26,  36,  41,  52,  65, 
68,  88,  94,  100,  189,  211,  226,  229,  247, 
280,  299,  (ii.)  239;  men,  spirit  of,  (i.) 
2,  13,  52:  test  of  character,  (i.)  180: 
weights  and  measurements,  August, 
191 1,  (i.)  266.  For  particular  members, 
see  their  names 


360 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


Feet:  varied  condition  on  the  march,  (i.) 
127:  warmth — effect  of  nature  of  surface, 

("■)  45 

Fenwick,  Mr.,  (i.)  4 

Ferrar  Glacier,  (ii.)  287  et  seq.:  'apposed' 
with  Taylor  Glacier,  (ii.)  136,  288:  cliffs, 
(ii.)  127:  coral  reef  structure,  (ii.)  128: 
geological  section  at  top  of  Lower  Ferrar, 
(ii.)  130:  movement,  (i.)  282,  (ii.)  136: 
sunholes  on  Lateral  Tongue,  (ii.)  128 

Ferrar,  Mr.  H.  T.,  (ii.)  300 

Ferrying  on  an  ice  floe,  (ii.)  198,  274,  ill.  196 

Finger  Valleys,  (ii.)  294 

Finnesko,  (i.)  91,  114,  372,  ill.  228 

Finnesskis,  (ii.)  227 

Fire  outbreaks  in  the  hut — second  winter, 
(ii.)  221,  229 

Firms  supplying  stores,  (ii.)  339-41:  em- 
ployees' interest  in  Expedition,  (ii.)  340 

Fish:  catches,  (i.)  184,  195,  220,  ill.  186: 
frozen  into  ice,  (i.)  149,  150,  152:  glacier 
ice,  fish  found  in,  (ii.)  142:  new  genera 
and  new  species,  (ii.)  333:  seal's  stomach, 
fresh  fish  in,  (ii.)  90 

Flashlight — photography,  (i.)  202,  203, 
208:  signalling  purposes,  possibilities  for, 
(i.)  209 

Flat  Iron  headland — portage,  (ii.)  176 

Fog  banks,  dispersal  of,  (ii.)  44 

Fog  Bay,  (ii.)  13 

Food — hut,  fare  in,  (i.)  199:  Mid-winter 
menu,  1912,  (ii.)  223:  seals  and  penguins 
as,  see  titles  Seals  and  Penguins:  simple 
fare  v.  luxuries,  (i.)  188:  sledging  diets, 
see  Sledging  Journeys:  vegetables,  fresh, 
brought  by  ship,  (ii.)  228 

Football,  (i.)  177,  180,  185,  186,  191,  194: 
Debenham's  accident,  (i.)  300,  306,  (ii.) 
153,  225 

Forage,  (i.)  3,  (ii.)  342 

Forde,  R.,  P.O.,  (i.)  2:  cooking,  ill.  (ii.) 
166:  crevasse,  jammed  in,  (ii.)  196:  Depot 
Journey  (Autumn),  (i.)  97  note,  116:  De- 
pot Journey  (Spring),  (ii.)  199  et  seq.: 
frostbite  on  hand,  (i.)  286,  293,  (ii.)  166: 
Granite  Harbour  Geological  Expedition, 
(ii.)  152:  sledgemaster,  (ii.)  125:  snow- 
blindness,  (ii.)  194 

Fossils — Campbell's  finds,  (i.)  82,86:  Cloud- 
maker  Moraine,  (ii.)  221 :  Gondola  Ridge, 
(ii.)  179:  Mt.  Buckley  (i.)  388,  (ii.)  300: 
New   Zealand— Mt.    Potts,    (ii.)    255 


Four-man  team,  (ii.)  199 

Fram,  (ii.)  58 

Fraser,  Messrs.  James  &  Sons — Honorary 
Auditors,  (ii.)  339 

Fresh-water  cascade,  ill.  (i.)  71 

Frostbite  and  sunburn  combined,  (ii.)  74, 
117 

Frostbites.  See  names  of  Men  and  Ex- 
peditions 

Frost  rime,  (i.)  131 

Frost  smoke,  (i.)  173,  ill.  (ii.)  34 

Fry's  chocolates,  appreciation  of,  (ii.)  167 

Fuel  allowance  on  sledging  journeys.  See 
title  Sledging  Journeys 

Funds  of  the  expedition,  (ii.)  338 


Gardening — G'-an's  seakale,  (ii.)  173,  182: 
Simpson's  hyacinth  bulbs,  (ii.)  219 

Gateway,  (i.)  334,  339,  App.  22,  437 

Geikie,  Sir  A.,  (ii.)  345 

Geology — Debenham's  lectures,  (i.)  187, 
279:  instruction,  price  of — Nelson's  offer, 
(i.)  211:  oldest  rocks,  (ii.)  295:  Scott's 
interest  in,  (i.)  145  and  note:  South  Vic- 
toria Land — faulting  and  volcanic  out- 
breaks, (ii.)  299,  geological  history,  (ii.) 
295  et  seq.,  glacial  geology  resume,  (ii.) 
285  et  seq.:  Work  of  expedition — sum- 
mary of  geological  journeys,  (ii.)  301-2. 
For  particular  mountains,  districts,  &c, 
see  their  names 

Geology,  Cape,  (ii.)  166,  183 

Gilbert,  Sir  Humphrey,  quoted,  (i.)  166 

Glacial  geology  of  Victoria  Land — resume, 
(ii.)  285  et  seq. 

'Glaciated' — use  of  word,  (i.)  210,  (ii.)  284 

Glacier  Moat,  (ii.)  135 

Glacier  Tongue,  (i.)  94  et  seq.,  174:  end 
broken  away  in  March,  191 1,  journey  of, 
(i.)  283,  (ii.)  158,  194 

Glaciers — face  of  glacier,  ill.  (ii.)  59:  glass- 
roof  and  bottle-glass  ice,  (ii.)  129,  140, 
141,  178:  ice  splitting  in  the  cold,  (ii.) 
135:  marine  organisms  found  on,  (i.) 
196,  230,  (ii.)  144:  movement,  (i.)  282, 
(ii.)  173,  183,  282,  292,  307:  soundings  in 
connection  with,  (ii.)  274: — outlet  glacier 
valleys,  ill.  (ii.)  288:  problems,  (i.)  266: 
tongues,  (ii.)  307-8.  See  also  names  of 
Glaciers 

Glass-roof  ice,  (ii.)  129,  140,  141,  178 

'Glazed  frost,'  (i.)  47 


INDEX 


361 


Glendenning's  gift,  (i.)  4 

Glengall  Ironworks  Co.,  (ii.)  342,  343 

Go-cart.    See  Bicycle  Wheel  Carriages 

Goethe  quoted,  (i.)  166 

Goggles,  (i.)  321:  mules':  (ii.)  220,  234 

Gold,  prospecting  for,  (ii.)  134 

Goldie,  Sir  George  Taubman,  (ii.)  345 

Gondola  Mountain  (Mt.  Suess),  (ii.)  169, 
177,  178  et  seq. 

Goschen,  Lord,  (ii.)  345 

Gran,  Lieutenant  Tryggve — Ski  Expert, 
ill.  (i.)  112,  264,  (ii.)  125:  amateur  doctor, 
(ii.)  174:  cold,  sensibility  to,  (i.)  258: 
cooking,  (ii.)  182,  189:  Depot  Journey 
(Autumn),  (i.)  97  note:  Depot  Journey 
(Spring),  (ii.)  199  et  seq.:  entertainer,  (ii.) 
187,  223:  Erebus,  ascent  of,  (ii.)  241:  ad- 
ventures, 244  et  seq.:  —  gardening  at 
Granite  Harbour,  (ii.)  173,  182:  geologi- 
cal specimens  depoted  at  Granite  Har- 
bour, bringing  in,  (ii.)  293:  Granite 
Harbour  Geological  Expedition,  (ii.) 
152:  Hut  Point,  winter  visit,  (i.)  212, 
216:  instruction  in  ski-ing,  (i.)  24:  jump 
fixed,  (ii.)  227:  meteorological  work — 
second  winter,  (ii.)  217:  Nietzschian 
principles — Nature  Play  and  Birthday 
Ode,  (ii.)  187-8:  nunakol — name  for 
rounded  ridges,  (ii.)  159,  293:  ponies, 
going  on  ski  with,  (i.)  102:  'record'  for 
ski  runners,  (i.)  91:  ski-runner,  value  as, 
(i.)  105:  skis  and  sledge  runners,  inspec- 
tion of,  (ii.)  342:  stores  officer — second 
winter,  (ii).  217:  treacherous  ice,  escape 
from,  (ii.)  171:  value  of,  (i.)  102:  vocalist, 
(ii.)  182 

Granite  blocks  planed  by  glaciers  at  Cape 
Roberts,  ill.  (ii.)  184 

Granite  Harbour,  (ii.)  162:  avalanche  cliffs 
from  south  side,  ill.  (ii.)  180:  changes  in 
face  of  Piedmont,  (ii.)  116:  correct  posi- 
tion (ii.)  173:  Couloir  Cliffs,  ill.  (ii.)  158: 
depSt  of  provisions  left  at,  (ii.)  275:  ge- 
ological specimens,  (ii.)  175,  depot  re- 
covered, (ii.)  273 : — glacial  geology,  (ii.) 
292:  lichens  found,  (ii.)  164:  photographic 
epitome,  (ii.)  181:  route  to,  (i.)  285:  seals, 
(ii.)  117 

'Granite  House,'  (ii.)  166,  168,  ill.  166 

Granites,  intrusion  of,  (ii.)  297 

Great  Ice  Barrier.    See  Barrier 

Gregory  Point — now  an  island,  (ii.)  116 

Grouse  disease  worm,  Wilson  on,  (i.)  198 

Guthrie,  Dr.  John,  (ii.)  255 


H 


'Had  Again'  camp,  (ii.)  149 

Hagen,  finesskis  supplied  by,  (ii.)  227 

Half  Degree  Depot,  (i.)  369,  380 

Halo  rings  round  sun,  (i.)  320 

Hammers — Geological  hammers  as  build- 
ing tools,  (ii.)  62 

Hansen's  grave  on  Cape  Adare,  ill.  (ii.)  70 

Harpoon  gun,  loading,  ill.  (i.)  14 

Hasle,  Mr.  L.  S.,  (ii.)  330 

Head  gear,  (ii.)  157 

Heredity — Nelson's  lecture,  (ii.)  224 

Hill  climbing  at  Hut  Point,  (i.)  153 

Hjort's  Hill,  (ii.)  195 

Hobbs,  reference  to,  (ii.)  294 

Honeycomb  ice,  (ii.)  142 

Hooper,  F.  J. — Steward,  (i.)  7:  acetylene 
plant,  management  of,  (ii.)  217:  cooking, 
(i.)  295:  Erebus,  ascent  of,  (ii.)  242: 
Motor  Party,  member  of,  (i.)  296:  re- 
turn from  Southern  Journey,  (i.)  325: 
value  of,  (i.)  88 

Hooper,  Mt.,  depot,  (i.)  406 

Hope,  Mt.,  (i.)  334,  339,  349 

Hordern,  Mr.,  (ii.)  338 

Horse  management — Oates's  lecture,  (i.) 
193,  260 

Horses.     See  Ponies 

'Hour-glass'  dolphins,  (i.)  13,  (ii.)  251 

Howard  de  Walden,  Lord,  (ii.)  245 

Hudson,  Cape,  endeavours  to  reach,  (ii.)  250 

Humidity  of  the  air — measurement  im- 
possible, (i.)  201 

Hut,  ill.  (i.)  94,  (ii.)  42:  annexe,'  stables 
and  extension,  (i.)  89,  90,  164,  ill.  194: 
aspect  as  compared  with  Discovery  Hut, 
(i.)  193:  biological  workroom,  (i.)  162: 
description,  (i.)  76-7:  dog  hospital,  (i.) 
165:  first  Sunday,  (i.)  82-3:  galley  fire, 
difficulty  with,  (i.)  174:  heating,  light- 
ing, and  ventilating,  (i.)  163,  205,  231: 
ice  grottos  dug — larder,  (i.)  79,  80,  81, 
84,  ill.  94:  magnetic  instruments,  (i.) 
81,  84: — interior  arrangements,  com- 
fort, &c,  (i.)  86,  88,  160,  170,  171,  ill. 
94,  269:  landing  and  construction,  (i.) 
64,  68,  71,  74,  80,  81,  ill.  85:  photo- 
graphic studio,  (i.)  161:  plan,  (i.)  85: 
Simpson's  corner,  (i.)  80,  160:  situation, 
(i.)  79,  87,  89;  spring  discomforts,  (i.) 
290:  stable  effluvium,  (i.)  269:  working 
arrangements,  impression  of,  (i.)  160. 
Refer  also  to  Winter  Quarters 


362 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


Hut  Point,  ill.  (i.)  82,  138:  (ii.)  68:  bliz- 
zards, (i.)  140,  143,  154,  156,  168:  De- 
benham  and  Gran,  visit,  (i.)  212,  216: 
depot  of  provisions  left  at,  (ii.)  273 :  Dis- 
covery, articles  left  by,  (i.)  141,  App.  16, 
430:  Discovery  Hut,  condition  of,  (i.) 
83-4:  driven  spray,  (i.)  144:  emergency 
stores,  transport  prevented  by  bad 
weather,  (i.)  297:  first  trip  to,  (i.)  83-4: 
geology,  (i.)  145,  151:  land  route  to  Cape 
Evans,  (i.)  140:  life  at,  sketch  of,  (i.)  153 
et  seq.:  Meares'  and  Demetri's  visit,  (i.) 
276,  return,  287: — pond,  (i.)  84:  renova- 
tions, (i.)  303 :  sledge  journeys  between 
Hut  Point  and  Cape  Evans,  (i.)  155,  166, 
et  seq.,  168  et  seq.:  snowed  up,  hut  nearly 
buried,  1912,  (ii.)  230:  stabling  built,  (i.) 
148 

Hulton  Rocks,  traversing  ice  wall  at,  (i.) 
155,  167,  169  _ 

Huxley  quoted,  (i.)  231 

Hyacinth  culture,  (ii.)  219 

Hymn  singing,  (i.)  257:  accompanist,  (i.) 
214:  books,  dearth  of,  (i.)  171,  Nimrod 
Hut  supply,  198: — Northern  Party's 
hymns  and  psalms,  (ii.)  94 


I 


Ice — barrier,  bergs,  glaciers  and  pack,  see 
those  titles:  colour  pictures  attempted, 
(i.)  24,  51:  crystal  forms,  (ii.)  306,  ill. 
144,  304:  dirt  bands,  (i.)  86:  ferrying  on 
loose  floe,  (ii.)  274:  inland  ice  sheet,  (ii.) 
282,  283:  melting  by  sea  water  (barrier 
and  sea  ice),  (i.)  213 :  notes  on  ice  physics, 
(ii.)  303-10:  pinnacled  ice,  (i.)  178,  (ii.) 
146,  147,  215:  range  of  vision  for  ice  at 
sea,  (i.)  44,  (ii.)  247,  277:  Scott's  lecture, 
'Ice  Barrier  and  Inland  Ice,'  (i.)  211: 
sea  ice — comparison  with  Discovery  Days, 
(i.)  248,  dangers  of,  (i.)  72,  73,  134,  152, 
154,  App.  14,  427,  (ii.)  150,  171-2,  184; 
dates  of  freezing,  (i.)  157,  175;  floe,  used 
as  ferry,  (ii.)  198,  274,  ill.  196;  formation, 
(ii.)  304 — current,  effect  of,  (ii.)  94,  rapid 
formation,  (i.)  180,  (ii.)  264,  335: — 
freezing  up  of  sea,  ill.  (i.)  188;  fresh 
water  yielded  by,  (i.)  21,  App.  5,  423; 
gale,  ice  blown  out  by,  (i.)  176;  groaning, 
(ii.)  139;  increasing  against  the  wind, 
(i.)  150  et  seq.,  152;  opening  up,  ill.  (i.) 
133;  over-riding,  (i.)  151  et  seq.-,  pancake, 
(i.)  152  and  ill.,  (ii.)  383:  properties,  &c, 


(ii.)  304;  slush,  rope  dragged  under  like 
Discovery  boats,  (i.)  169,  App.  16,  430; 
surface — winds,  effects  of,  (i.)  208, 
young  ice  troubles  missed  in  Discovery 
days,  (i.)  199;— thickness,  (ii.)  336; 
waterholes  in,  (i.)  148,  150;  waves  and 
cracks,  (i.)  246,  247,  (ii.)  305,  see  also 
Tide  Crack;  zero  temperature,  critical 
point  in  freezing  of  salt  water,  (i.)  149; — 
structure,  ill.  (ii.)  78:  Wright's  lecture 
on  Ice  Problems,  (i.)  194 

Ice  age,  (ii),  294 

Ice-blink  over  barrier,  ill.  (i.)  56 

Ice  cap,  probable  thickness,  (ii.)  286 

Ice  caves,  ill.  (ii.)  24,  104 

Ice  flowers,  (ii.)  4,  304,  ill.  304 

Ice  foot,  (i.)  138,  146,  174,  444,  ill.  (ii.)  307 

Ice  grotto,  ill.  (i.)  269.    See  also  Arch  Berg 

Iceholes,  shelters  to,  (i.)  212 

Ice-house,  (i.)  2,  10,  24,  43 

Ice-scratched  block,  (ii.)  144 

Igloo  building,  (i.)  208,  250,  (ii.)  19  et  seq., 
89,  90,  95,  100,  101  et  seq. 

Inaccessible  Island,  (i.)  175,  233,  236,  238 

India — Ponting's  lecture,  (i.)  266 

Indian  Government,  mules  given  by.  See 
Mules 

Inexpressible  Island,  (ii.)  84 

Insects  at  Granite  Harbour,  (ii.)  166 

Interests  in  Polar  expeditions,  ancient  and 
modern,  (i.)  200 

Ionisation,  (ii.)  313 

Island,  doubtful,  (ii.)  160 

J 

Jaggers  &  Cook,  Messrs.,  (ii.)  254 
Japan — Ponting's  lecture,  (i.)  202  and  ill. 
Jonah  medal,  (ii.)  220 


Kaikoura,  sounding  at,  (ii.)  254 

Kar  Plateau,  (ii.)  171,  293 

Kayaks,  (ii.)  65,  76,  ill.  68 

Keohane,  P.,  P.O.,  (i.)  2:  Atkinson's  trib- 
ute to,  (ii.)  216:  cooking,  (i.)  302:  Depot 
Journey,  (i.)  97  note,  116:  glacier  march, 
(i.)  346:  mending  and  making  gear,  (ii.) 
217,  219:  Northern  Party  Relief  Party, 
member  of,  (ii.)  213:  ponies,  encourage- 
ment of,  (i.)  102:  rhyme  on  blizzard,  (i.) 
336:  snow  blindness,  (i.)  342:  Southern 
Party,  dog  team  taken  out  to  meet,  (ii.) 
211 


INDEX 


363 


King  Edward  VII  Land — Northern  Party 

unable  to  land,  (ii.)  57 
Kinsey,  Mr.,  (i.)  3,  4,  App.  2,  421,  (ii.)  253, 

345;  Scott's  farewell  letter  to,  (i.)  414 
Kipling  quoted,  (i.)  231 
Koettlitz  Glacier,   (ii.)    140,   290,  294,  ill. 

137,   142,  289:  sponges,  &c,  found  on, 

(1.)  196,  233 
Kyffen,  Mt.,  (i.)  347  and  ill. 


Labyrinth  Camp,  (ii.)  143 

Lakes:  glaciers,  lakes  on,  (ii.)  132,  133,  144, 
196:  thawing  out,  (ii.)  335 

Land  sighted,  (i.)  54 

Landing,  (i.)  63  et  seq. — completion,  80: — 
broken  ice,  interruption  by,  (i.)  74:  dogs 
and  ponies,  work  of,  (i.)  70,  74-5:  man- 
haulers,  work  of,  (i.)  69,  70,  75 

Lashly,  W. — Chief  Stoker,  ill.  (i.)  355:  ar- 
tificer, work  as,  (i.)  214:  cooking,  (i.)  295: 
crevasse,  fall  into,  (i.)  357:  engine-room, 
work  in,  during  storm,  (i.)  8:  Evans,  Lt., 
care  of,  (i.)  App.  24,  438,  (ii.)  205:  ex- 
perience in  camp  work,  (i.)  167,  168: 
motor  sledge  journey,  (i.)  301  et  seq.: 
mules,  charge  of,  (ii/)  217,  225:  sledge 
meter  made,  (ii.)  227:  Southern  Journey, 
strain  of,  (i.)  341:  value  of,  (i.)  299 

Lava,  at  sea  bottom,  (i.)  17,  20,  23 

Lectures:  Atkinson — parasitology,  (i.)  198: 
scurvy,  (i.)  264:  Bowers — Polar  clothing, 
(i.)  277:  sledging  diets,  (i.)  200:  Day — 
motor  sledges,  (i.)  222:  Debenham — ge- 
ology, (i.)  187,  279:  volcanoes,  (i.)  219: 
Evans,  Lieut. — surveying,  (i.)  215: 
Lillie — evolution,  (ii.)  253:  Meares — 
Lolo  Land,  (i.)  272:  Nelson — biologist, 
objects  of,  (i.)  199,  217,  280:  heredity, 
(ii.)  224:  tides,  (ii.)  220:  Northern  Party 
(Second  Winter),  (ii.)  94:  Oates — horse 
management,  (i.)  193,  260:  Ponting — 
Burmah,  (i.)  186:  China,  (i.)  279:  Indian 
travels,  (i.)  266:  Japan,  (i.)  202  and  ill.: 
Scott,  Capt. — Ice  Barrier  and  inland  ice, 
(i.)  211:  plans  for  Southern  Journey,  (i.) 
185,  280:  Simpson — coronas,  halos,  rain- 
bows and  auroras,  (i.)  178:  general  mete- 
orology, (i.)  256:  meteorological  instru- 
ments, (i.)  207:  Taylor — Beardmore 
Glacier,  (i.)  209:  physiographic  features 
of  region  traversed  by  Western  Geologi- 
cal Party,    (i.)    229:    physiography,    (i.) 


183,  269:  Wilson — Antarctic  flying  birds, 
(i.)  177:  penguins,  (i.)  190:  sketching,  (i.) 
203:  Wright — Constitution  of  Matter, 
(i.)  280:  ice  problems,  (i.)  194:  radium, 
(i.)  263 

Levick,  G.  M. — Surgeon,  ill.  (i.)  101: 
bleaching  powder,  effects  of,  (ii.)  63: 
blubber  stove  'The  Complex,'  (ii.)  97: 
camp  among  crevasses,  (ii.)  83  and  ill.: 
ration  experiment,  (ii.)  96:  Northern 
Party,  member  of,  (ii.)  53;  duties,  (ii.) 
65,  dentistry,  65: — Warning  Glacier,  on 
geological  expedition  to,  (ii.)  70,  72 

Lichen  Island,  (ii.)  84-5 

Lichens  (ii.)  164,  165 

Lillie,  D.  G. — Biologist  in  Ship,  (i.)  24,  ill. 
101,  (ii.)  328:  lectures  on  evolution,  (ii.) 
253  :  Wangamumu,  stay  at,  (ii.)  254,  255: 
work  of  (i.)  24,  139,  (ii.)  252,  253 — sum- 
mary, 328 

Lister,  Mt.,   scarp   of,    (ii.)    143,    ill.    124 

Literature,  sledging  literature,  &c.  See 
Books 

Loads:  pulling  on  ice,  (i.)  24:  weights  car- 
ried, refer  to  titles  Dogs,  Mules,  Ponies, 
and  names  of  Expeditions 

Lolo  Land — Meares'  lecture,  (i.)  272 

LongstafT,  Mt.,  (i.)  331 

Lower  Glacier  Depot,  (i.)  342  and  note,  395 

Lucas  sounding  machines,  (ii.)  266,  267 

Lunar  Corona,  ill.  (i.)  176 

Lyttelton — hospitality,  (ii.)  254,  265 

M 

Mackay  Glacier,  (ii.)  294,  301:  icefalls 
(Skauk),  (ii.)  177:  movement,  (ii.)  173, 
182,  292:  panorama,  (ii.)  180:  tongue, 
(ii.)  169 

McMurdo  Sill.    See  Dolerite  Sill 

McMurdo  Sound—?'//,  (i.)  58:  tides,  (ii.) 
336 

Macquarie  Islands,  (ii.)  251 

Magnetic  observations,  (ii.)  3 1 1-2 

Mangonui,  (ii.)  253 

Maori-European  half-castes — Inheritance 
of  pigment,  (ii.)  330 

Maps:  Erebus,  Mount,  (ii.)  244:  prelim- 
inary map,  (ii.)  at  end  of  text:  Southern 
Journey,  (i.)  at  end  of  text:  Terra  Nova, 
tracks  of,  (ii.)  400,  406:  Western  Geolog- 
ical Journeys — folding  map,  (ii.)  290; 
sketch  map,  (ii.)  284:  Winter  Journey, 
(ii.)  76 


3^4 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


Marine  organisms  found  on  glacier  ice,  (i.) 

196,  233,  (ii.)  144 
Markham,  Sir  Albert,  K.C.B.,  (ii.)  343 
Markham,  Sir  Clements,  (ii.)  345:  Scott's 

farewell  message,  (i.)  415 
Mather,  J.  H. — Taxidermist,  (ii.)  260 
Matter,  Constitution  of — Wright's  lecture, 
(i.)  280 

Meares,  C.  H. — In  charge  of  dogs,  ill.  (i.) 
274,  296,  305:  assistants  on  board 
ship,  (i.)  7:  care  of  dogs  in  storm,  (i.)  10: 
Corner  Camp  (Spring)  journeys  to,  (i.) 
294,  295,  296,  302:  Depot  Journey  (Au- 
tumn), (i.)  97  note:,  dog  driving,  &c, 
views  of,  (i.)  128-9:  feet,  condition  on 
march,  (i.)  127:  frostbites,  (i.)  121:  har- 
ness and  accoutrements,  assistance  in 
preparing,  (ii.)  342:  Hut  Point,  visits  to, 
(i.)  168,  184,  185,  187,  276,  278,  287,  303, 
306,  307,  ill.  277:  lecture,  (i.)  272:  pony 
accident,  (i.)  134,  App.  14,  427:  ski-ing, 
ill.  (i.)  240:  snowblindness,  (i.)  337: 
Southern  Journey,  (i.)  324,  326  et  seq., 
398,  App.  9,  424 

Melbourne  Glacier,  (ii.)  80 

Melbourne,  Mount,  (ii.)  yy,  302 

Meteorological  instruments — Simpson's  lec- 
ture, (i.)  207 

Meteorological  work,  (i.)  160:  Bowers'  rec- 
ord of  Winter  Journey,  (ii.)  2,  II,  App. 
347:  summary,  (ii.)  316-27 

Meteorology — Simpson's  lecture,  (i.)  256 

Middle  Barrier  Depot,  (i.)  326,  402 

Mid-Glacier  Depot,  (i.)  392 

Midnight  at  Hut  Point,  March  27th,  191 1, 
ill.  (i.)  138 

Midnight  sun,  (i.)  55;  ill.  58 

Midwinter  celebrations:  Evans,  Cape,  (i.) 
224-7,  (ii.)  325  ill,  224:  Northern  Party, 
(ii.)  68,  98 

Miller  Glacier,  (ii.)  180,  '293 

Miller,  Mr.  M.  J.,  Mayor  of  Lyttelton,  (i.) 
1-2,  4,  App.  2,  421 

Milton  quoted,  (i.)  165 

Mirage  and  refraction,  (i.)  310,  362,  (ii.) 
112,  113,  195 

Mock  moons,  (i.)  186,  187,  ill.  178,  (ii.)  11 

Monument  Rock,  (i.)  394 

Moon  and  planets,  distorted  appearance, 
(i.)  246 

Moss,  (ii.)  164,  166,  177 

Motor  sledges:  at  work,  (i.)  64,  68;  ill.  (i.) 
302:  cold,  probable  effect  of,  (i.)  297: 
Day's  faith  in,  (i.)  92,  279,  288:  Day's 


lecture,  (i.)  222:  first  motor  on  the  Bar- 
rier, (i.)  304:  landing,  (i.)  91,  ill.  j6— 
loss  of  one  sledge,  (i.)  73: — limited  ex- 
pectations, (i.)  278,  295:  previous  ex- 
periments, (i.)  304  note:  repairing  axle 
case,  (i.)  296:  rollers,  making — Simpson's 
small  motor  used  as  lathe,  (i.)  288;  split- 
ting, (i.)  305: — ship,  stowage  on,  (i.) 
3,  6:  Southern  Journey,  Motor  Party, 
(i.)  301,  302-6,  ill.  308;  breakdowns,  (i.) 
306,  310 — final  breakdown,  (i.)  311,  312: 
— trials,  (i.)  295:  value  of,  (i).  301 
Mules  given  by  Indian  Government:  'Ab- 
dullah'— leader,  (ii.)  235:  accommoda- 
tion on,  and  preparation  for,  sea  voyage, 
(ii.)  255:  apportionment,  (ii)  218,  232: 
blizzards,  exercise  in,  (ii.)  222:  exercise 
on  deck,  (ii.)  257:  food,  taste  in,  (ii.)  234: 
gear  supplied,  forethought  shown  in, 
(ii.)  220:  goggles,  (ii.)  234:  'Gulab,'  (ii.) 
229,  232,  234:  'Khan  Sahib' —  slow  pace, 
(ii.)  232,  233:  'Lai  Khan,'  ill.  (ii.)  216: 
landing,  (ii.)  260:  Pulleyn,  Lieutenant 
G.,  Expedition's  debt  to,  (ii.)  255:  'Pya- 
ree' — trouble  with  capped  knee,  (ii). 
224,  229,  232:  shelter  walls,  (ii.)  235:  two 
killed  on  return  journey,  (ii.)  239:  work 
of,   (ii.)   231,  232 — weights  carried,  232, 

233 
Musical  talent,  (i.)  40,  (ii.)  94 

N 

Nansen,  (i.)  23 

Nansen  Glacier — movement,  Professor 
David's  view,  (ii.)  282 

Nansen-Petersen  water-bottle,  ill.  (ii.)  335 

Navigation,  knowledge  of,  necessary  for 
officers,  (i.)  215,  App.  19,  436 

Neald,  W.  H.— Steward,  (i.)  7 

Nelson,  E.  W. —  Biologist,  ill.  (i.)  78,  264, 
(ii.)  485:  Barrier  problems,  (ii.)  284:  hut, 
cubicle  in,  (i.)  90,  162:  ice  holes,  shelters 
for,  (i.)  212:  keeping  warm  with  a  slow 
mule,  (ii.)  233:  lectures — biologist,  ob- 
jects of,  (i.)  199,  217,  280;  heredity,  (ii.) 
224;  tides,  (ii.)  220: — motor  sledges,  man- 
aging, (i.)  64:  occultations,  predicting, 
(ii.)  225:  South  Polar  Times,  contribu- 
tion, (i.)  280:  summary  of  work  in  Winter 
Quarters,  (ii.)  335-7:  work  and  methods, 
(i.)  17,  24,  26-7,  90,  262,  (ii.)  217,  220 

New  Glacier,  (ii.)  175,  ill.  184 

New  Year's  Day  on  Summit  Journey,  (i.) 
362 


INDEX 


365 


New  Zealand:  biological  work  of  the  Ex- 
pedition,  (ii.)   330:  fossils  from  Mount 
Potts,  (ii.)  331:  Government  grant,  (ii.) 
338 
Nicknames,  notes  on,  (i.)  31-2,  App.  6,  423 
'Nigger'  (cat),  fall  overboard,  (ii.)  256 
Night  marching,    (i.)    105,    no,    129,   309, 

(ii.)  160,  163 
Nimrod  Depot,  (i.)  83 
Nimrod    Group — soundings    near    charted 

position,  (ii.)  277 
Nimrod   Hut:    aspect    as    compared    with 
Discovery  Hut,  (i.)  198:  Campbell's  visit 
to,  (i.)  86 — return,  94,  App.  10,  425: — 
papers  from,  (i.)  272:  stores  in,  (i.)  197 
Nimrod  tents,  (i.)  101,  103,  104 
Ninnis,  Captain — volunteer,  (ii.)  344 
Nordenskiold  Ice  Tongue,  (ii.)  114 
North  Cape,  coast  west  of,  (ii.)  247 
North  Cape,  New  Zealand,  (ii.)  253 
Northern  ice  face,  changes  in,  (ii.)  94 
Northern    (originally   Eastern)    Party,    (i.) 
43  and  note,  (ii.)  53 :  Eastern  Journey — 
Abbott's   accident,    (ii.)    59;   Amundsen, 
meeting  with,   (ii.)   58;  attempted  land- 
ings  on   King   Edward   VII    Land    and 
Barrier — unable  to  land,  (ii.)  57,  59:  in- 
structions, (ii.)  54:  list  of  members,  (ii.)  53 
Northern  '  Journeys — Adare,      Cape, 
landing  at — first  winter,  (ii.)  61,  ill.  76; 
blizzards,   (ii.)  63,  67  et  seq.;  Borchgre- 
vink's  Huts,   (ii.)  61,  66;  duties  of  the 
different  members,  (ii.)  65;  expeditions, 
(ii.)  69,  70,  71,  72;  food  stores,  (ii.)  63 — 
mutton   condemned,    (ii.)    62;    hut,    (ii.) 
61,  67,  68,  ill.   70,  76,  —  application   of 
bleaching-powder,  (ii.)  63 :  ice  gone  out, 
(ii.)  70:  kayaks,  (ii.)  65,  76:  permanent 
camp    established — look    out    for    ship, 
(ii.)  76;  'Pram,'  fishing  from,  (ii.)  64  and 
ill.;    recreations,    (ii.)    68:    routine,    (ii.) 
66;  ship  rejoined,  (ii.)  76,  258 

Evans  Coves,  explorations  from,  (ii.) 
76  et  seq.;  food — short  rations,  &c,  (ii.) 
86,  87;  Levick's  Party,  delay  in  rejoining, 
(ii.)  81 — explanation,  (ii.)  83;  relaying, 
(ii.)  79,  81;  snow  blindness,  (ii.)  78,  80, 
84;  stores,  (ii.)  77 

Geological  work,  (ii.)  63,  80,  82,  84, 
85,  104,  105,  302:  ice  conditions,  work  re- 
stricted by,  (ii.)  73,  75:  second  coast  trip, 
Western  Journey,  (ii.)  72 

Second  winter,  Abbott's  accident,  (ii.) 
100:  blizzards,  (ii.)  85  et  seq.,  94,  100,  102; 


blubber  lamps,  (ii.)  93;  blubber  stove, 
(ii.)  92 — Levick's  'Complex,'  (ii.)  97; 
boots  giving  out,  (ii.)  89,  91,  103;  chim- 
ney shaft  blocked  by  drift — no-air  scares, 
(ii.)  96,  100;  clothes,  condition  of,  (ii.) 
91,  98;  cooking  arrangements,  (ii.)  92: 
food  supplies, — (ii.)  87;  fresh  fish  from  a 
seal's  stomach,  (ii.)  90;  ice  larders,  (ii.) 
99 — buried  in  drift,  (ii.)  100,  102;  med- 
icine case,  flavourings  and  luxuries  from, 
(ii-)  93>  97>  98;  old  seaweed,  (ii.)  89,  92; 
rations,  (ii.)  92 — reduced,  (ii.)  93;  seals 
and  penguins,  (ii.)  87,  90,  9*,  93,  95,  99, 
100: — frostbites,  (ii.)  90,  101,  103:  igloo 
— dug  out,  (ii.)  89,  90,  95,  100,  101,  ill. 
84,  94,  97;  'igloo  back,'  (ii.)  104;  left, 
(ii.)  106;  party  after  winter  in,  ill.  (ii.) 
104;  visited  on  homeward  journey,  (ii.) 
275: — Levick's  party,  tent  blown  to 
rags,  &c,  (ii.)  90;  recreations,  books,  &c, 
(ii.)  94,  95;  routine,  (ii.)  92;  salt,  use  of 
salt  water  ice,  (ii.)  95;  sickness — enter- 
itis, (ii.)  91,  103,  104,  105;  sledging, 
preparations  for  (ii.)  104  et  seq. 

Sledge  journey  to  Cape  Evans,  bliz- 
zards, (ii.)  107-8,  no,  112;  breakdown 
of  sledge,  (ii.)  119,  121:  choice  of  route, 
(ii.)  97,  99,  101,  in,  114;  clothes — issue 
of  spare  clothes,  (ii.)  106;  collecting  speci- 
mens, (ii.)  118,  119;  David's  specimens, 
&c,  collected,  (ii.)  116:  depots  found — 
Atkinson's  at  Butter  Point,  (ii.)  119; 
Taylor's  at  Cape  Roberts,  (ii.)  117,  119: 
— frostbite  and  sunburn,  (ii.)  117;  ice 
conditions,  (ii.)  116,  119,  120,  121;  ill- 
ness, (ii.)  107  et  seq. — effect  of  change  of 
diet,  (ii.)  118: — narrow  escapes,  (ii.) 
1 10;  Polar  Party,  forebodings  as  to,  (ii.) 
119,  121 — news  at  Hut  Point,  (ii.)  121: 
— relaying,  (ii.)  113;  return  to  Cape 
Evans,  (ii.)  122,  and  ill.  349:  Relief 
Expeditions — Atkinson's  attempt,  (ii.) 
119,  213-16;  perils  of  return  journey,  (ii.) 
216:  Tena  Nova's  attempts,  (ii.)  260,  264 

Norwegians  at  the  Pole.    See  Amundsen 

Nose-nips,  (ii.)  8 

Notothenia,  (i.)  28 

Nunakoller,  (ii.)  159,  293  and  note 

Nussbaum  Bar  (or  Riegel),  (ii.)  290 


Oates,  Captain  L.  E.  G.,  ill.  (i.)  6,  238, 
240,    260:    Barrier   problems,    (ii.)    283: 


366 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


cheery  pessimist,  (i.)  101,  119,  298,  318, 
320,  338:  Depot  (Autumn)  Journey,  (i.) 
97  note:  frostbite,  (i.)  119,  121:  lecture 
on  horse  management,  (i.)  193,  260; 
ponies — care  and  management  of  (i.) 
71,  297,  319;  assistants  on  board  ship, 
(i.)  7;  forage  provided,  (i.)  3,  (ii.)  342; 
landing,  (i.)  63;  restive  ponies,  (i.)  288; 
safeguarding  from  'Christopher,'  (i.)  308; 
storm  at  sea,  (i.)  7,  8,  90 

Southern  Journey,  (i.)  341;  strain  of, 
(i.)  372,  380,  402  et  seq.;  courage  and 
endurance,  (i.)  404  et  seq.;  death,  (i.) 
408;  epitaph  and  cairn,  (ii.)  238:  value 
of — work,  &c,  (i.)  183,  368:  Keohane's 
tribute,  (ii.)  271 

Oates  Land,  (ii.)  247 

Oats  scattered  on  Depot  Journey,  (i.)  122 
and  note:  disappearance,  (i.)  321 

Observation  Hill,  ill.  (i.)  82:  cross  erected 
in  memory  of  Polar  Party,  (ii.)  272  and 
ill. 

Occultations:  Nelson's  predictions,  (ii.) 
225:  observing,  ill.  (i.)  247 

Omelchenko,  Anton.    See  Anton 

One  Ton  Camp,  (i.)  120,  320,  (ii.)  208,  237 

Open  water  during  winter,  (i.)  195,  199: 
appearances  of,  Polar  deceptions,  (ii.) 
184 

Outfit,  (ii.)  338  et  seq.  See  also  names  of 
articles 


Pack:  beauty,  (i.)  51:  bergs  in  pack, — 
movement,  &c,  (i.)  26,  32,  34,  ill.  23: 
pressure  caused  by,  (i.)  3 1  — best  meridian 
on  which  to  meet  pack,  (i.)  18,  cp.  (ii.) 
267;  birds  seen,  (i.)  31,  40:  calm,  (i.)  17, 
42,  50:  changes  in  character,  (i.)  22,  27, 
28,  41,  46,  50,  60:  chart  of,  (i.)  50: 
Christmas  Eve,  ill.  (i.)  36:  Christmas 
Day,  (i.)  39,  40:  composite  floes,  (i.) 
36:  delay  on  outward  voyage,  (i.)  20-52; 
coal  consumption  question,  (i.)  33,  35, 
38,  47,  49:  drift,  (i.)  21,  23,  25,  35— sum- 
mary of  current  in  pack,  (i.)  38:  first 
sight  of,  (i.)  15:  furling  sail,  ill.  (i.)  20: 
hot  day,  (i.)  24:  island  reported,  (i.)  21: 
King  Edward's  Land  pack,  (i.)  22,  28, 
30:  large  floes,  (i.)  36,  37:  life  beneath, 
(i.)  45:  midnight  scene  (i.)  17  and  ill.: 
monotony,  (i.)  23:  moonlight,  ill.  (i.)  29: 
nature  of,  (i.)  18,  22,  60:  North  Cape, 
pack  beyond,    (ii.)   248,   249:  notes  on, 


(ii.)  305:  opening,  (i.)  27,  ill.  48,  76:  pene- 
trability, extent  of,  (i.)  19:  photographs 
and  pictures,  (i.)  34:  pressure,  absence 
of,  (i.)  51:  release,  (i.)  47,  ill.  76:  scien- 
tific work,  (i.)  51,  (ii.)  257,  259,  260,  268, 
269:  screw-pack,  (ii.)  158:  second  winter 
cruise,  (ii.)  256  et  seq.,  ill.  266:  ski  exer- 
cise, (i.)  21,  24,  33:  summary  of,  during 
first  voyage,  (i.)  49:  temperature,  (i.)  23, 
33:  third  voyage,  struggle  with  pack,  (ii.) 
268-9:  trend  of  pack  in  Ross  Sea,  (ii.) 
268 

'Packing'  from  Alcove  Camp,  (ii.)  131,  176, 
ill.  132 

Palgrave,  F.  T.,  quoted,  (i.)  289 

Paraffin:  leakage  at  One  Ton  Depot,  &c, 
(i.)  App.  26,  439;  (ii.)  237;  pouring  at 
low  temperature,  (ii.)  11 

Paraselene,  (i.)  186,  187,  ill.  178 

Parasitology:  Atkinson's  discoveries,  (i.) 
35,91,  185,  214,  262:  Atkinson's  lecture, 
(i.)  198 

Park  Lane  Camp,  (ii.)  142 

Peary:  age,  (i.)  258:  blizzard  in  the  open, 
(h-)  36 

Pendulum  observations,  (i.)  217,  234,  (ii.) 

3I353H 

Penelope  Point,  cave  on,  (ii.)  72,  75,  and 
ill. 

Penguins,  ill.  (ii.)  87,  90:  'A  proud 
Mother,'  ill.  92:  Adelies,  (i.)  37,  45,  and 
ill.;  ill.  (ii.)  92:  tapeworm  parasite,  (i.) 
35;  teaching  young  to  swim,  (i.)  191; 
track,  sledging  track  crossing,  ill.  (ii.)  154: 
blubber  as  lard — Wilson's  invention,  (i.) 
151,  153,  App.  15,  621:  chasing  ship,  (ii.) 
269:  diving,  ill.  (ii.)  108:  dogs  and  pen- 
guins, see  Dogs 

Emperors,  (ii.)  269,  ill.  31;  anxiety  to 
incubate,  (ii.)  26;  eggs,  ill.  (ii.)  34; 
Ferrar  Glacier,  Emperor  on,  (ii.)  129; 
first  adult  seen,  (i.)  28;  life  history,  epi- 
sode of,  (i.)  57,  App.  8,  613;  plumage  in 
winter,  brilliancy  of,  (i.)  197;  primitive 
character,  (ii.)  1,  cp.  (i.)  190;  record 
weight,  (i.)  151;  rookery  at  Cape  Crozier, 
(i.)  58 — winter  visit  to,  (i.)  251,  (ii.)  23 
et  seq.;  spoor,  (ii.)  158;  swimming  (ii.) 
139;  tapeworm  parasite,  (i.)  91 

Food,  penguins  as,  comparison 
with  seal  meat,  -&c,  (ii.)  105,  ill, 
129,  228:  'I  Don't  Care  What  Be- 
comes of  Me,'  ill.  (i.)  44:  jumping, 
ill.     (ii.)    64:    killer    whales    and    pen- 


INDEX 


367 


gums,  (i.)  58,  60:  moulting,  ill.  (ii.)  154: 
music,  liking  for,  (i.)  34,  App.  7,  613: 
open  water,  presence  indicating,  (ii.) 
214,  215:  pack,  penguins  in  (i.)  40,  45: 
playing,  (i.)  40:  primitive  characters, 
(i.)  190,  (ii.)  1:  promenade,  ill.  (ii.)  61: 
showman  at  Cape  Adare,  (ii.)  62:  skuas 
and  penguins,  (i.)  40:  Wilson's  lecture, 
(i.)  190 

Pennell,  Lieutenant  H.  L.  L.  (i.)  5,  ill. 
(ii.)  256:  charge  of  ship,  (i.)  87,  94:  mag- 
netic log  and  current  log,  charge  of,  (ii.) 
252:  Oamaru,  landing  at,  (ii.)  276 

Perched  blocks,  (ii.)  179 

Personal  relations,  good  fellowship,  &c, 
Refer  to  Expedition 

Petrels — feeding,  mode  of,  (i.)  48:  snowy- 
petrel  seen  far  south,  (ii.)  207,  265 

Phosphorescence,  (i.)  203,  (ii.)  222 

Photography — flashlight,  (i.)  202,  203,  208: 
hut,  work  at,  (i.)  161:  Ponting's  pupils, 
(i.)  287,  291 

Physics — summary  of  work  of  Expedition, 
(ii.)  3 1 1-5.  For  particular  branches,  see 
their  names 

Physiography — Taylor's  lectures,  (i.)  183-4, 
269:  Victoria  land — resume,  (ii.)  285  et 
seq.;  Australian  parallel,  (ii.)  285;  Meso- 
zoic  times,  warmer  conditions  in,  (ii.) 
286;  plateau  and  mountains,  (ii.)  287 

Pianola,  (i.)  92 

Piedmont  Glacier,  (ii.)  158,  186,  192  et 
seq.,  293,  294:  crevasses,  dangerous  trav- 
erse of,  (ii.)  191  et  seq. 

Pigmentation:  birds,  (i.)  177:  Maori-Euro- 
pean half-castes,  (ii.)  330 

'Pilgrim's  Progress'  quoted,  (i.)  288 

Plankton,  (ii.)  259:  choice  of  time  for  put- 
ting over  net,  (ii.)  278:  number  of  sam- 
ples collected,  (ii.)  328,  331 

Polar  clothing.     See  Clothing 

Polar  deceptions,  (ii.)  184.  See  titles  Mi- 
rage and  Refraction 

Polar  Expeditions,  ancient  and  modern, 
interests,  (i.)  200 

Polar  night  falling,  (i.)  246,  ill.  (ii.)  164 

Polar  Party,  Refer  to  title  Southern  Journey 

Pole  reached — level,  &c,  (i.)  375  and  ill. 

Ponies — accidents,  (i.)  96,  299,  see  also  sub- 
heading Losses:  acclimatisation,  (i.)  89, 
116,  165:  appetites  on  the  march,  (i.) 
312:  blizzards,  effect  of,  (i.)  1 12-13,  I29, 
132,  133,  3H,  3iS:  'Blossom,'  (i.)  115, 
116,  129:  blubber  eaten,  (i.)  269:  'Bones,' 


(i.)  242-3,  258,  329— eating  Christopher's 
goggles,  (i.)  310:  'Chinaman,'  (i.)  245, 
248,  258,  306,  317,  320  et  seq. — re-named 
'The  Thunderbolt,'  324:  'Christopher,' 
(i.)  266,  270 — restiveness,  tricks,  &c, 
(i.)  288,  290,  291,  293-4,  3°6,  308  et  seq., 
3ioo  323 

Condition,  &c. — at  sea,  (i.)  5,  II,  14, 18, 
26,  27,  43,  49,  53,  55;  storm,  effects  of, 
(i.)  12-13: — landing,  (i.)  63;  on  shore — 
(i.)  86,  87,  144,  164,  167:  improvement, 
(i.)  246,  258,  261,  278;  spring  condition, 
(i.)  286-7,  290,  293,  295,  297,  302.  Refer 
also  to  sub-heading  Work 

Disembarking,  (i.)  91,  ill.  64:  dogs 
attack  fallen  pony,  (i.)  117:  exercising, 
(i.)  45,  170,  ill.  288,  418:  falling  in  stall, 
(i.)  201:  fighting,  (i.)  306:  forage — 
amount  taken,  (i.)  3,  (ii.)  342:  'Hacken- 
schmidt,'  (i.)  157,  159-60:  hunger  and 
habits,  (i.)  123 :  illness,  (i.)  218,  242-4, 354, 
ill.  234:  'James  Pigg,'  (i.)  no,  113,  129, 
131  ^  seq.,  218,  326  et  seq.:  'Jehu,'  (i.) 
287-8  et  seq.,  306,  308,  322  et  seq.,  325, 
326-re-named  'The  Barrier  Wonder,' 
(i.)  324,  325:  lameness,  (i.)  306:  land, 
sight  of,  effect,  (i.)  331:  leading,  fatigue 
of,  327-8,  329:  losses — deaths,  (i.)  9,  10, 
129:132-3,  137,  159-60:  two  lost  on  sea 
ice,  (i.)  132-3  et  seq.,  App.  14,  617,  (ii.) 
149: — memory  of  discomfort,  (i.)  14-15: 
'Michael,'  (i.)  322,  ill.  292:  'Misery,'  (i.) 
113:  nicknames,  regularisation,  (i.)  206, 
App.  18,  423:  night  marching,  (i.)  323, 
324:  'Nobby,'  (i.)  248,  308,  323,  324,  329, 
33°?  338,  ill.  292:  Northern  Party,  two 
landed  by,  (ii.)  59:  parasites,  (i.)  238,  239 
— cure,  258-9:  restiveness,  (i.)  70,  75,  77, 
266,  270:  rugs,  (i.)  312:  runaway,  (i.) 
102:  shelter  for — pony  walls,  (i.)  312, 
317,  323,  333,  HI-  328,  (ii.)  235:  ski- 
ing with — Gran's  experiment,  (i.)  102: 
'Snatcher,'  (i.)  238,  245,  299-300,  338: 
'Snippets,   (i.)   258,   266,  269,  270,  306, 

329,  331:  snow-blindness,  equipment 
against,  (i.)  310:  snowshoes,  (i.)  104, 
107,  108,  no,  115,  119,  260,  331,  338: 
soft  snow,  struggles  in,  (i.)  97,  107: 
Southern  Journey — ponies  told  off  for, 
(i.)  259,  277,— shot,   (i.)   324,  325,  328, 

330,  331,  339:— strength  and  vigour  (i.), 
68,  315,  316:  tricks,  (i.)  248,  258:  'Uncle 
Bill,'  (i.)  no:  unequal  pace,  (i.)  308: 
'Victor,'  (i.)  258,  300,  323,  329,  331,  333: 


368 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


weakly  pony,  (i.)  287,  290,  291,  306,  308: 
'Weary  Willy,'  (i.)  104,  117,  1 18,  122, 
132-3:  Wilson's  view  of,  (i.)  338:  wind, 
hare  of,  (i.)  308 

Work,  power  of,  conduct  and  condition 
on  the  march,  &c,  ill.  (i.)  334:  expecta- 
tions and  prospects,  (i.)  81-2,  97,  320, 
338;  First  Depot  Journey,  (i.)  146  et  seq.; 
landing  stores,  &c,  (i.)  68,  70,  74;  loads 
pulled,  (i.)  74,  101,  103;  Southern  Jour- 
ney, (i-)  3°8~9  ei  seQ->  3J6  et  seq.,  420, 
421  et  seq.: — crocks  improving,  (i.)  312, 
315;  last  survivors,  condition  compared 
with  Shackleton's  ponies,  (i.)  334 

Ponting,  H.  G. — Antarctic  scenery,  en- 
thusiasm for,  (i.)  62,  67,  89:  aurora,  ina- 
bility to  obtain  photographs  of,  (i.) 
197:  cinematograph  work,  (i.)  4,  287,  ill. 
76,  311,  (ii.)  265:  coloured  pictures — 
not  satisfactory,  (i.)  173:  dark  room, 
fitting  up,  (i.)  90:  flashlight  photography, 
(i.)  202,  203,  208:  ice  adventure,  (i.)  72: 
inaction,  effect  on  health,  (i.)  245:  in- 
structing others,  (i.)  287,  291:  killer 
whales,  escape  from,  (i.)  65-6:  lectures — 
Burmah,  (i.)  186;  Indian  travels,  (i.) 
266;  Japan,  (i.)  202  and  ill.;  North 
China,  (i.)  279 — pack  and  bergs,  photo- 
graphs of,  (i.)  34:  sea-sickness,  (i.)  7: 
skua  nesting,  pictures  of,  (i.)  70:  value 
of — work,  &c,  (i.)  182,  279,  287:  artist 
and  craftsman,  (i.)  16 1-2,  ill.  160: — 
Western  Geological  Party — agreement 
with  Taylor's  leadership,  (i.)  13 

Potential  gradient,  (ii.)  312,  326 

Pot  holes  in  boulders,  (ii.)  177 

Potts,  Mt.,  fossils  from,  (ii.)  255 

Pram,  launch  of,  (ii.)  64  and  ill. 

Precipitation — distribution  of  snowfall, 
(ii.)  292 

Preparations,  (i.)  1-3,  (ii.)  338  et  seq. 

Pressure  and  pressure  ridges — Armitage, 
Cape,  (i.)  101:  Beardmore  district,  (i.) 
347,  348,  SSh  386,  387,  390,  ill.  340: 
cracks  running  from  Bluff  to  Cape  Cro- 
zier,  (i.)  107,  127:  Crozier,  Cape,  ridges 
continued  in  waves  on  Barrier,  &c,  (i.) 
107,  113,  127:  cutting  passage  for  sledges, 
(ii.)  116:  direction  of,  south  of  Drygalski, 
(ii.)  112:  ice  blocks  near  Discovery  Bluff, 
ill.  (ii.)  170:  rise  of,  (i.)  149:  Southern 
Journey,  (i.)  356,  357,  ill.  [34:  Winter 
Journey,  (ii.)  4,  13,  16,  17,  39  et  seq., 
ill.  10 


Priestley  Glacier,  (ii.)  82  and  ill.,  81 
Priestley,  R.  E. — Geologist,  ill.  (ii.)  66:  cre- 
vasse, fall  into,  (ii.)  81:  Erebus,  ascent 
of,  (ii.)  240-5:  face  burnt  with  flashlight, 
(ii.)  67:  Northern  Party,  member  of,  (ii.) 
53 — duties,  (ii.)  65:  sea-sickness,  (i.) 
7:  work,  (ii.)  300 
Public,  Scott's  message  to,  (i.)  416 — re- 
sponse, (ii.)  346 


Quotations. — Captain     Scott's     Journal, 
(i.)  44,  165-6,  231,288-9 


Radcliffe,  Mr.  Dan,  (ii.)  344,  345 

Radioactivity  of  the  air,  (ii.)  312 

Radium — Wright's  lecture,  (i.)  263 

Rain  beyond  Antarctic  circle,  (i.)  26 

Ramp,  (i.)  214,  ill.  (ii.)  232:  cones  on  (i.) 
176,  271-2,  275:  nature  of,  (i.)  270,  275: 
view  from,  (i.)  176,  278,  199:  wind  and 
temperature,  (i.)  195,  222 

Range  of  vision  for  ice  at  sea,  (i.)  44,  (ii.) 
247,  277 

Rats  on  the  Third  Voyage,  (ii.)  267 

Razorback  Island,  (i.)  156,  236 

'Record'  for  ski  runners,  (i.)  91 

Record  Camp,  (i.)  369 

Redcliff  Nunakol,  (ii.)  177 

Reid,  Mt.,  (i.)  334 

Rendezvous  Bluff,  (ii.)  162,  168,  173: 
height,  (ii.)  162,  173 

Rennick,  Lieutenant  H.  E.  de  P.,  ill.  (i.) 
66:  Bowers,  exchange  with,  (i.)  92,  App. 
1 1,  425 :  motor,  adaptation  to  work  Lucas 
sounding  machine,  (ii.)  267:  pianola, 
erection  of,  (i.)  92:  soundings,  charge  of, 
(i.)  17,  20,  23,  25,  (ii.),  268,  256 

Rhodes,  Messrs.  Arthur  and  George,  (i.)  4, 
App.  2,  421 

Richter,  thermometers  made  by,  (ii.)  336 

Riegel,  (ii.)  294 

River  of  salt  water — McMurdo  Sound,  (ii.) 
148 

Roberts,  Cape,  (ii)  162  and  ill.  180:  pano- 
rama, (ii.)  272:  Taylor's  Depot,  (ii.)  118, 
192,  193 

Robertson  Bay,  (ii.)  60,  62:  caves  and  bergs, 
(ii.)  67:  dangers  for  ships,  (ii.)  258 

Roche  moutonnee,  (ii.)  '179 

Rocks  of  Southern  Mts.,  (i.)  331 


INDEX 


3^9 


Rocky  Mountains,  finger  valleys  of — par- 
allel with  Koettlitz  glacier,  (ii.)  292 

Rope  dragged  under  slush  on  sea  ice,  like 
Discovery  boats,  (i.)  169,  App.  17,  431 

Rorquals.     See  Whales 

Ross  Archipelago,  (ii.)  295 

Ross  Sea,  mud  from  sea  bottom,  (ii.)  299: 
summer  temperatures,  (ii.)  332 

Ross's  voyage,  (ii.)  268:  track  crossed  by 
Terra  Nova,  (ii.)  254 

Royal  Society  Range — geology,  (ii.)  298: 
panorama,  (i.)  285 

Royds,  Cape,  ill.  (i.)  197:  Campbell's  trip 
to,  (i.)  82,  86:  disadvantages  as  station, 
(i.)  62:  winter  expedition  to,  with  a  go- 
cart,  (i.)  197  et  seq. 

Running  water,  (ii.)  82:  Dry  Valley,  (ii.) 
131:  Evans,  Cape,  (i.)  76  and  ill.:  Koett- 
litz Glacier,  (ii.)  144:  waterfall  on  Red- 
cliff  Nunakol,  (ii.)  177 


Sabine,  Mt.,  (i.)  54 

Saennegras,  for  hands,  (ii.)  43;  and  Glos- 
sary 

Safety  Camp,  (i.)  102,  129  et  seq.,  132  (ii.) 
199 

Sails  on  sledges,  (i.)  378,  379,  (ii.)  159 

St.  Gothard  Valley,  parallel  with  Ferrar 
and  Taylor  Glaciers,  (ii.)  290 

Salt — use  of  salt  water  ice,  (ii.)  95 

Sandstone  found  in  Beardmore  district, 
(i-)  350 

Sastrugi,  (i.)  323,  327,  328,  333,  356,  359, 
363,  365,  366,  367,  370,  371,  373,  377, 
381,  387,  ill.  382:  bearded  and  toothed, 
(i.)  366,  386:  slipperiness,  (i.)  114;  un- 
dercut, (ii.)  81.    Refer  also  to  Glossary 

Sastrugi,  Cape,  (ii.)  81 

Science — Scott's  appreciation,  (i.)  185,  242: 
value  of  the  Expedition,  (i.)  280 

Scott,  Capt.  R.  F.,  ill.  (i.)  frontispiece,  118, 
218,  338:  appreciation  by  members  of 
Expedition,  (i.)  225-6,  (ii.)  271:  birthday 
celebrations,  (i.)  211  and  ill.:  care  and 
thoroughness,  instance  of,  (i.)  188:  cook- 
ing, (i.)  330,  363,  393:  crevasse,  descent 
into,  to  rescue  dogs,  (i.)  125  et  seq.,  App. 
13A,  426:  dog  driving,  (i.)  80,  97:  dogs, 
care  of,  and  thought  for,  (i.)  191,  (ii.) 
260:  electrical  instruments,  instruction 
in,  (i.)  191:  footsore,  (i.)  306:  frostbite, 
(i.)  119:  geology,  interest  in,  (i.)  145  and 
VOL.  11 — 24 


note;  lectures — 'Ice  Barrier  and  Inland 
Ice,'  (i.)  211:  plans  for  next  season,  (i.) 
185,  280: — Midwinter  speech,  (i.)  325: 
narrow  escape  on  Inaccessible  Island, 
(i.)  187:  notes  on  fly-leaf  of  MS.  book, 
(i.)  165-6:  photography,  lessons  in — 
preparation  for  Southern  Journey,  (i.) 
284,  291:  portrait,  (i.)  frontispiece:  quo- 
tations in  notebooks,  (i.)  44,  165,  231, 
288-9;  science,  appreciation  of,  (i.)  185, 
242:  selection  of  sledging  outfit,  (ii.)  342: 
Southern  Journey: — accidents,  (i.)  351, 
385,  386;  condition  of  feet,  (i.)  409;  death, 
(i.)  410;  Journal — facsimile  of  last  words, 
(i.)  410;  letters,  &c,  found  with  diaries  in 
tent,  (i.)  410-17,  (ii.)  271;  Message  to 
Public,  facsimile,  (i.)  416;  notebooks 
used,  (i.)  App.  24,  438;  vigour  on,  (i.) 
341,  353,  363 

Uniform  overcoat,   affection   for,    (i.) 
268 
Scott,  Lady  ('K.'),  (i.)  4,  5:  Scott's  farewell 

letter  to — extracts,  (i.)  415 
Scott,  Mrs.,  Scott's  farewell  letter  to — ex- 
tracts, (i.)  415 
Scurvy — Atkinson's  lecture,  (i.)  264.     See 

also  Evans,  Lieut. 
Sea  bottom — muds  and  oozes  between  New 

Zealand  and  the  Antarctic,  (ii.)  331 
Seakale — Gran's  experiment,  (ii.)  173,  182 
Seals,  (i.)  138,  141,  168,  209,  213,  233,  ill. 
106,  (ii.)  68,  75,  158:  callousness,  (ii)  186. 
crab-eaters  —  following  ship,  (ii.)  268 — 
curiosity,  (ii.)  140:  dead  seals — Dry 
Valley,  (ii.)  132;  Evans  Coves,  (ii.) 
85: — dogs  attacking  (i.)  233:  fight  be- 
tween bulls,     (ii.)  117 

Food,  seals  as,  (ii.)  91,  93,  167,  186 — 
cooking  successes,  (i.)  92,  185;  liver,  (i.) 
18,  153,  (ii.)  147;  raw  seal,  (ii.)  114 

Practical  joke,    (ii.)    109:  Ross  seals, 

scarcity,  (ii.)  268:  sea  leopards,  (i.)  31, 

188,  202:  startling  jump,  (ii.)  171:  thirty 

miles  inland,  (ii.)  144:  tracks,  (ii.)  112; 

voice  compass,  (ii.)  144:  Weddell  seals, 

ill.  (ii.)  6,  112:  young  seals,  (ii.)  159,  165 

Search  Party.    See  Southern  Search  Party 

Seas — heaviest  seas  from  the  south,  (i.)  175 

Sea-water  samples  collected,  (ii.)  329,  331 

Seaweed,  decayed  seaweed  as  food,  (ii.)  89, 

92 
Shackleton's  Expedition,  Southern  Journey 
— comparisons:  dates,  (i.)  348,  349,  350, 
352,  361;  luck  in  weather,  &c,  (i.)  332, 


37° 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


334,  341: — winter  quarters,  visits  to,  (ii.) 
229.    See  also  Nimrod  Hut 

Shambles  Camp,  (i.)  339,  396 

Shear  crack,  crossing,  (ii.)  184 

Shelter  found  on  weather  side  of  hills,  (i.) 
186,  213 

'Shut-eye,'  (ii.)  164 

Sick  companions,  care  of,  (i.)  408 

Signalling — possibilities  of  magnesium  flash- 
light, (i.)  209 

Simpson,  G.  C. — Meteorologist:  balloon  work 
(i.)  172,  173,  ill.  266;  barrier  problems, 
(ii.)  283;  blizzards,  theories  of,  (i.)  213, 
256;  frostbite,  (i.)  284;  lectures — coronas, 
halos,  rainbows  and  auroras,  (i.)  178; 
general  meteorology,  (i.)  256;  meteoro- 
logical instruments,  (i.)  207: — Meteoro- 
logical Report,  (ii.)  316:  value  of — work, 
&c,  (i.)  80,  88,  160,  181,  207,  ill.  247, 

(ii;)  317 

Sinking  crusts.    See  'Barrier  Shudder' 

Siren  Bay,  dangers  of,  (ii.)  73 

'Sisters,'  (ii.)  67 

'Skauk,'  (ii.)  177 

Sketching — talent  in  the  Expedition,  (i.) 
34:  Wilson's  lecture,  (i.)  203 

Ski  and  ski-ing,  ill.  (i.)  240:  pack,  exercise 
in,  (i.)  21,  24,  33:  practice  in  winter 
quarters,  (i.)  199,  208,  215,  222,  224,  232: 
pulling  on,  device  for  facilitating,  (ii.)  73 : 
'record'  for  runners,  (i.)  91:  value  of,  (i.) 
340,  341,  343,  348,  363,  364,  366,  367,  372, 
397,  399,  (ii.)  79,  81,  84;  not  used  to  the 
full,  (i.)  343 

Ski-shoes — P.O.  Evans's  new  design,  (i.) 
201  and  ill.,  228 

Ski-sticks,  use  of,  (i.)  69,  326 

Skua  gulls,  (ii.)  146:  departure  from  Hut 
Point,  (i.)  151,  154:  dogs  and  skuas,  (i.) 
64:  eggs  as  food,  (ii.)  173,  176:  fighting, 
(ii.)  186,  ill.  64:  nesting,  (i.)  69,  (ii.)  162, 
166,  173,  sad  history  of  three  families, 
(ii.)  185: — penguins  and  skua,  (i.)  40: 
Southern  Journey,  skuas  seen  far  inland, 

0-)  345,  363 

Sky  effects,  (i.)  203,  (ii.)  45,  47,  219:  April 
after-glow,  ill.  (ii.)  268:  April  sunset  from 
Hut  Point,  ill.  (ii.)  238:  cirrus  clouds  over 
Barne  Glacier,  ill.  (i.)  174:  earth  shad- 
ows on  clouds,  (ii.)  199,  228:  iridescent 
clouds,  ill.  (i.)  257:  sunset,  April  2,  191 1, 
(i.)  150:  winter  dawn,  (ii.)  44 

Sledgemeters — broken,  (i.)  351:  lack  of — 
Lashly's  substitute,  (ii.)  227 


Sledges,  difference  in,  (i.)  169:  list,  (i.) 
App.  18,  433-434,  435 :  runners— iron, 
(ii.)  71,  72,  118;  sealskin  coverings,  (i.) 
69;  tapered  runners,  sledges  with  (Fin- 
nesskis),  (ii.)  227,  233 

Sledging  Journeys,  ill.  (ii.)  106:  candle 
lamp,  sledging  by — Winter  Journey,  (ii.) 
6,  7:  diets  and  rations, — (i.)  105,  (ii.)  228, 
Bowers'  lecture,  (i.)  200:  distributing 
food — 'Shut-eye,'  (ii.)  164:  hard-pulling 
work,  provision  needed  for,  (i.)  323: 
horsemeat,  (i.)  330,  332,  399,  401:  in- 
creased ration,  effect,  (i.)  396,  401:  Le- 
vick's  experiment,  (ii.)  96:  raw  blubber, 
(i.)  88:  Scott's  investigations,  (i.)  202: 
summit  ration,  success,  (i.)  348,  356,  367, 
ill.  266:  tea,  (i.)  373 :  tea  v.  cocoa,  (i.)  201, 
(ii.)  164:  Western  Geological  Party  menu, 
(ii.)  163:  Wilson  on,  (i.)  201:  Winter 
Journey  experiments,  (i.)  224,  253,  (ii.) 
15,50 

Distances  covered,  (i.)  128,  316,  320, 
322,  327,  344,  351,  358,  365,  (ii.)  11  et 
seq.,  16,  17,  39,  43  et  seq.,  108  et  seq.,  203: 
equipment — saving  weight,  question  of 
(Depot  Journey),  (i.)  108,  109,  Winter 
Journey,  (i.)  254: — experience,  value  of, 
(i.)  123,  167,  168:  four-man  team,  (ii.) 
199:  fuel  allowance: — Western  Spring 
Journey,  (i.)  281-6;  Winter  Journey,  (ii.) 
22,  32: — impressions  on  the  march,  (i.) 
106,  107,  108,  no,  in:  loads  carried, 
(i.)  230,  (ii.)  127,  156:  see  also  titles 
Dogs,  Mules,  and  Ponies,  Mems.  for,  (i.) 
119:  minor  discomforts,  (i.)  72,  345,  350: 
monotony,  (i.)  360,  361,  369,  371,  374: 
night  marching,  (i.)  105,  no,  129,  308, 
309,  (ii.)  :6o,  163:  sail,  help  from,  (i.) 
378,  379,  (ii.)  159:  sweating  in  low  tem- 
peratures, (i.)  167,  169,  345,  348,  349, 
35°,  359,  ("•)  l%4:  three-man  team,  (i.) 
App.  24,  438:  two-man  unit,  disadvan- 
tages, (ii.)  206.  For  particular  journeys, 
see  titles  Depot  Laying,  Northern  Jour- 
ney, Sec. 

Sleeping-bags,  (i.)  90:  best  size,  (ii.)  42,  49: 
carrying  open,  (i.)  285:  eiderdown  inner 
bags,  (i.)  223,  (ii.)  19,  38,  43,  200:  getting 
into,  ill.  (i.)  322:  list  of  bags  and  donors, 
(i.)  App.  18,  432,  433:  turning,  (i;)  254, 
(ii.)  42,  49:  Winter  Journey,  condition  on, 
(ii.)  9,  15,  22,  37,  38,  42  et  seq. — ice  ac- 
cumulated, (i.)  254;  (ii.)  49 

Smith,  Mr.  Reginald — Scott's  farewell  let- 


INDEX 


371 


ter  to,  (i.)  414:  library  presented  by,  (ii.) 

344,  345 
Smoking,  (ii.)  187 
Snow — crystal  forms,  (ii.)  306 
Snow  blindness — dogs,  (i.)  78:  first  experi- 
ence of,  (i.)  69:  treatment  with  zinc  sul- 
phate, (ii.)  194.    For  particular  instances, 
see  names  of  Men  and  Expeditions 
Snow  crusts — blizzards  and  seasonal  dep- 
osition, (i.)  118 
Snow  drifts  as  camping  grounds,  (ii.)  143 
Snow  knife,  (i.)  208,  212 
Snow  shelters,  warmth  in,  (i.)  241 
Snow  shoes  for  ponies.    See  title  Ponies 
Snowy  petrel  seen  far  south,  (ii.)  207 
'Soldier.'    See  Oates,  Captain 
Soulsby,  Sir  W.,  (ii.)  346 
Soundings,  (i.)  17,  20,  23,  25,  33,  41,  48,  53, 
55,  56,  (ii.)  247,  253,  274:  adaptation  of 
motor  to  work  Lucas  machine,  (ii.)  253, 
256:  deep-sea  soundings,  (ii.)  267:  glacier 
movements,  (ii.)  274:  ice,  soundings  taken 
through,  (ii.)  336:  rorqual,  wire  fouled 
by,  (ii.)  249 
Souper,  Miss — Midwinter  presents,  (i.)  226 
South  Africa — Government  grant,  (ii.)  338 
South  Polar  Times,  (i.)  228,  280,  (ii.)  217, 

222 
South  Trinidad,  collections  from,  (ii.)  329 
South  Victoria  Land — geological  history, 
(ii.)  295-300;  resume  of  physiography 
and  glacial  geology,  (ii.)  285-94 
Southern  Barrier  Depot,  (i.)  330,  398 
Southern  Journey — cinematograph  of  start, 
(i.)  306,  309:  equipment,  organisation, 
&c,  of  Parties — plans  and  preparations, 
(i.)  90,  276-7,  278,  280,  App.  9,  424,  ill. 
360:  motor  sledges,  independence  of,  (i.) 
279,  304:  photography — Scott's  prepa- 
rations, (i.)  281,  291:  plans  well  laid, 
equipment  right  in  every  detail,  (i.) 
306,  336,  354,  415,  416:  ponies  told  off, 
(i.)  259:  Scott's  lectures,  (i.)  185,  280: 
selection  of  party,  qualifications,  &c, 
(i.)  215,  278,  App.  19,  436 — final  selec- 
tion of  Polar  Party,  (i.)  364:  Table  of 
outward  and  homeward  marches  on  the 
Barrier,  (i.)  443 

First  Stage — Barrier — blizzards,  (i.) 
312-15,  326  et  seq.,  335-8:  Gateway 
reached,  (i.)  338:  man-haulers  breaking 
trail,  (i.)  338:  Motor  Party  met,  (i.)  323: 
order  of  march,  (i.)  309,  310,  317,  325: 
ponies  shot,  (i.)  324,  325,  339,  refer  also 


to  title  Ponies;  re-arrangement  of  party, 
(i.)  332:  snow-blindness — Meares,  (i.) 
337:  steering  difficulties,  (i.)  327,  332 

Second  Stage — Beardmore  Glacier,  (i.) 
340:  accidents — falls  into  cracks  and 
crevasses,  (i.)  341,  351,  352:  Bowers' 
party,  progress,  &c,  (i.)  345,  346:  course 
steered,  (i.)  344,  348,  349:  Evans'  party, 
difficulties,  &c,  (i.)  342,  345  et  seq.,  strain 
on  Wright  and  Lashly — results  of  bliz- 
zard, (i.)  341; — notebook  turned,  (i.)  351 
and  note:  pulling  with  full  loads,  (i.)  342: 
re-organisation  of  party,  (i.)  340  note'. 
ski,  question  as  to  taking  on,  (i.)  348: 
sledgemeter  broken,  (i.)  351:  sledges — 
exchange,  (i.)  346;  iced  runners,  (i.) 
343;  ten-foot  runners,  (i.)  344: — snow- 
blindness,  (i.)  342,  343,  349:  vigour  of 
Scott's  Party,  (i.)  341,  342,  346 

Third  Stage  —  Summit  Journey  — 
Christmas,  (i.)  357,  feast,  358-9:  course, 
(*•)  355 :  Evans'  Party  tiring — misman- 
agement of  sledge,  (i.)  360,  361:  hyp- 
someter  thermometer  broken,  (i.)  359: 
Lashly's  fall  into  crevasse,  (i.)  357:  New 
Year's  Day,  (i.)  362,  363:  Scott's  team, 
continued  fitness,  (i.)  360,  362:  sledges 
rebuilt  on  ten-foot  runners,  (i.)  362: 
southerly  wind,  (i.)  357 

Fourth  Stage — Summit  Journey  con- 
tinued after  departure  of  last  return 
party,  (i.)  364,  ill.  360,  374:  ages  of 
Polar  Party,  (i.)  354:  arrangement  in 
pulling,  (i.)  364:  bad  surface,  sandy 
snow,  &c,  (i.)  365  et  seq.,  369,  371:  bliz- 
zard, (i.)  367:  cold  felt,  (i.)  371,  372,  374: 
continued  fitness,  (i.)  371:  difficult  steer- 
ing, (i.)  370,  372:  finnesko,  condition  of, 
(i.)  372:  forebodings,  (i.)  369,  375:  heavy 
pulling,  (i.)  370,  371,  372,  373:  mishap  to 
watch,  (i.)  369:  most  southerly  camp,  (i.) 
366:  Norwegian  flag  sighted,  (i.)  375: 
Oates  beginning  to  fail,  (i.)  372:  pitching 
tent,  ill.  (i.)  358:  Pole  reached,  (i.)  374, 
375 — Norwegian  record  and  tent,  (i.)  375 

Fifth  Stage — Return  from  the  Pole — 
ailments,  (i.)  359,  384,  386,  393:  bliz- 
zards, (i.)  378  et  seq.:  continued  fitness 
of  Wilson,  Bowers,  and  Scott,  (i.)  379: 
crevasses,  falls  into,  (i.)  386:  crevasses,  a 
maze  of — the  worst  day,  (i.)  390-1:  end 
of  Summit  Journey,  (i.)  387:  Evans, 
P.O.: — bad  frostbites  and  signs  of  failure, 
(i.)  379,  380,  383,  384,  386  et  seq.,  393; 


372 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


crevasse,  fall  into,  and  its  effects,  (i.) 
386;  death,  (i.)  394-5: — food  shortage, 
(i.)  369 — rations  reduced,  391,  393: — 
heavy  pulling,  (i.)  378,  379,  384:  hunger 
increasing,  (i.)  382,  383,  385,  393:  lost 
articles  recovered,  (i.)  383,  384:  Oates 
beginning  to  fail — cold  feet  and  frost- 
bites, (i.)  378:  sandy  snow,  (i.)  378,  379, 
384>  393 :  Scott's  accident,  (i.)  385,  386: 
ski  boots,  signs  of  wear,  (i.)  379:  sleep  in 
spite  of  anxieties,  (i.)  381:  sleeping-bags, 
condition  of,  (i.)  382,  385:  steering  im- 
possible —  snow,  (i.)  390;  tracks  lost, 
(i.)  377,  381,  382,  385 

Sixth  and  Last  Stage — Return  Journey 
on  the  Barrier,  (i.)  396:  absence  of  wind, 
(i.)  399,  400:  cairns  and  tracks,  (i.)  397 
et  seq.'.  finnesko,  (i.)  401:  head  winds,  (i.) 
401,  405,  406,  407,  409:  heavy  pulling, 
(i.)  399:  hope  lessening,  (i.)  403,  404: 
hunger,  (i.)  400:  means  of  ending  troubles 
handed  over  from  medicine  case,  (i.)  406, 
407:  natural  death,  decision  to  face,  (i.) 
412,  415:  Oates  failing — condition  of 
feet,  &c,  and  consequent  delay,  (i.)  402, 
403  et  seq.,  death,  (i.)  408: — rapid  closing 
of  season,  abnormal  weather  conditions, 
(i.)  399,  400  et  seq.,  406,  407  et  seq.,  unex- 
pected low  temperatures,  (i.)  404: — 
shifting  sledges,  (i.)  396:  shortage  of 
fuel  at  Southern  Barrier  Depot,  (i.)  398, 
App.  26,  439; — further  shortages  at 
Middle  Barrier  and  Mount  Hooper 
Depot,  (i.)  402,  406: — snow  blindness, 
(i-)  392,  399;  spirit  of  the  party,  397,  403, 
409;  steering  difficulties,  (i.)  397-8,  400; 
surface  terrible — sandy  snow,  sastrugi, 
&c,  (i.)  396,  399  et  seq.;  talk  in  the  tent, 
(i.)  404;  weather-bound  in  last  camp — 
the  fatal  blizzard,  (i.)  409-10,  App.  27, 
441;  np  one  to  blame — Scott's  letters,  (i.) 
412-13 

Geological  work,  (i.)  388,  389,  392, 
(ii.)  237,  300,  302,  344:  grave  of  Polar 
Party,  (ii.)  237-8,  ill.  236:  map,  (i.)  at 
end  of  text:  meal  in  camp,  ill.  (i.)  316: 
memorial  cross  on  Observation  Hill,  (ii.) 
272  and  ill.:  monotony,  (i.)  360,  361,  369, 
371,  374,  383 

Return  of  supporting  parties — appear- 
ance of  members  on  return,  ill.  (i.)  350; 
Day  and  Hooper,  (i.)  325;  dog  teams 
under  Meares,  (i.)  340  note,  341,  398; 
First  (Atkinson's)  Party,   (i.)   340  note, 


352,  353,  App.  23,  437;  date  of  arrival 
at  Cape  Evans,  (ii.)  204: — Second  (Lieut. 
Evans)  Party,  (i.)  340  note,  364,  388,  392- 
399,  App.  24,  438,  (ii.)  205 

Shackleton's  dates — comparison  with, 
(i.)  348,  349,  352— dates  caught  up,  361: 
Shackleton's  luck,  contrast  with,  (i.) 
332,  34:>  ("•)  334:  sleeping-bags,  getting 
into,  ill.  (i.)  322 

Supporting  expeditions — dog  teams 
sent  to  meet  Southern  Party,  (i.)  406 
note,  (ii.)  206;  held  up  by  blizzards,  (ii.) 
206-9;  navigation  difficulties,  (ii.)  210- 
216;  not  relief  expeditions,  (ii.)  206;  plans 
and  stores,  (ii.)  205;  question  of  travel- 
ling south  from  One  Ton  Camp,  (ii.)  208 
— stores  left  at  camp,  208;  return,  hard- 
ships of — effect  on  men  and  dogs,  (ii.) 
208,  209;  second  attempt,  (ii.)  21 1-2 16 
Southern  (Last)  Depot,  (i.)  373,  378 
Southern  Mountains — description,  (i.)  334: 
geology,  (i.)  348,  350,  352;  banding- 
recurrence  of  Beacon  Sandstone,  (i.)  344; 
rocks,  (i.)  331: — nearness  to  Pole  sug- 
gested by  snow  conditions,  (i.)  372: 
scenery,  (i.)  358:  trend  of — possibility 
of  shortening  journey  to  the  Pole,   (i.) 

334 

Southern  road — interruption,  danger  of,  (i.) 
95  and  note;  passage  of,  by  ponies,  (i.)  97 

Southern  Search  Party,  (1912)  ill.  (ii.) 
234:  alternatives,  plans,  &c,  (ii.)  223 — 
decision,  224  et  seq. :  commander  of  mule 
party — C.  S.  Wright,  (ii.)  232:  crevasses, 
precautions  against,  (ii.)  233:  depot  lay- 
ing, (ii.)  230,  231:  depots,  depletion  of — 
heavy  starting  weights  necessitated,  (ii.) 
225:  dog  teams,  (ii.)  229:  routine,  (ii.) 
235:  tent  found,  cairn  built,  (ii.)  237,  238, 
ill.  236 — Oates'  epitaph,  238 

Speyer,  Sir  E. — Honorary  Treasurer,  (ii.) 
338,  345:  Scott's  farewell  letter  to,  (i.) 
412 

Sphinx  Rock,  (ii.)  75 

Sponges  found,  (ii.)  144,  147,  ill.  329:  abun- 
dance at  sea  bottom,  (ii.)  333;  Granite 
Harbour,  (ii.)  274 

Spray  ridges  of  ice  after  a  blizzard,  ill.  (i.) 

145 

Stapf,  Dr.  O. — examination  of  South  Trini- 
dad specimens,  (ii.)  330 
Stevenson,  R.  L.,  quoted,  (i.)  289 
Stores  taken,   (i.)  97-99:  arrangement  on 
landing,    (i.)    70:   firms   supplying,    (ii.) 


INDEX 


373 


338-343:   nothing   forgotten,    (ii.)    341: 
quality,    (i.)    91:    replenishment — loads 
landed,  Feb.  1912,  (ii.)  260:  variety,  (ii.) 
341:  ways  of  store-keepers,  (i.)  241 
Stormer,  Professor,  references  to,  (i.)  179, 

197 
Storms  at  sea — outward  voyage,  (i.)  7-1 1; 
losses   sustained,    (i.)  II : — worst  storm 
of  all,  (ii.)  265 
Stowaway  on  Third  Voyage,  (ii.)  266 
Strain,  Mr.  P. — Honorary  Dentist,  (ii.)  255 
Strand  moraines,  (ii.)  196 
Strathcona,  Lord,  (ii.)  345 
Structure  of  Antarctic  continent,  Taylor  on, 

(ii.)  285-6 
Sub-glacial  stream,  (ii.)  145 
Subsidences.    See  'Barrier  Shudder' 
Suess,  Mt.,  looking  south,  ill.  (ii.)  176 
Summit — conditions  compared  with  Shack- 
leton's  anticipations,  (i.)  365:  level — va- 
riation in  barometer  readings,  (i.)  381: 
surface,  (i.)  365  et  seq.,  369,  371,  377,  378, 
385 — undulations,  (i.)  358,  378;  variety 
of,  (i.)  358: — variable  light  winds  prob- 
able, (i.)  370 
Summit  ration,  (i.)  348,  358,  366,  ill.  266 
Sun,    last    day   of — impression,    (i.)    171: 
midnight  sun,  (i.)  80,  ill.  58:    recording 
rays,  (i.)  393,  ill.  271:    return  of — cele- 
brations,   (i.)    389,    ill.    271;     (ii.)    228: 
effect  on  health  and  spirits,  (i.)  270,  (ii.) 
102 
Sunburn,  chill  on,  (i.)  349 
Sunburn  and  frostbite,  (ii.)  74,  117 
Sunday — first   Sunday  at  hut,    (i.)    82-3: 

hut  routine,  (i.)  208 
Sunholes,  (ii.)  128 

Surface,  nature  of,  on  Barrier.    See  Barrier 
Surveying — Lieut.  Evans'  lecture,  (i.)  215 
Sweating  in  low  temperatures,    (i.)     167, 
169,  346,  348,  349,  365,  (ii.)  184 


Tapeworm  with  a  single  host — Atkinson's 
discovery,  (i.)  92 

Taylor  Glacier,  (ii.)  130,  288,  294  et  seq. 

Taylor,  T.  Griffith— Geologist,  ill.  (i.)  264: 
barrier  problems,  (ii.)  283 :  bicycling  to 
Turk's  Head,  (i.)  287:  cut  hand,  (ii.)  174, 
175:  fall  through  sea  ice,  (i.)  152:  inac- 
tion, effect  of,  (i.)  246:  Lectures — Beard- 
more  Glacier,  (i.)  209:  modern  physiog- 
raphy,  (i.)    183-4:    Western  Geological 


Journeys,  physiographic  features  of  re- 
gion traversed,  (i.)  229: — Physiography 
and  glacial  geology  of  Victoria  Land,  (ii.) 
285-300:  pony  driving,  (i.)  75:  school 
and  university  friendships,  (ii.)  125: 
sketching  talent,  (i.)  34:  snow-blindness, 
(ii.)  194:  Valhalla,  article  in  South  Polar 
Times,  (i.)  228-9:  Western  Geological 
Party,  leader  of,  (i.)  13,  (ii.)  152:  work 
and  value,  (i.)  142,  181 

Tea,  effect  of,  (i.)  373 :  tea  v.  cocoa,  (i.)  201, 
(ii.)  164 

Telephone  communications,  (i.)  234,  249, 
290,  291,  294,  295,  302 

Temperature,  cause  of  fluctuations — (i.) 
190:  cold,  sensation  of,  not  conforming 
to  temperature,  (i.)  209:  comparative 
tables,  (ii.)  317-18,  320,326-7:  deep  sea 
temperatures,  (i.)  18 — series  of,  (i.)  26-7: 
— Hut  Point,  (i.)  188 — March,  1912, 
comparison  with  191 1,  (ii.)  212: — in- 
verted temperature,  (i.)  177,  180,  222: 
low  temperatures — Barrier,  (i.)  255,  (ii.) 
281:  comparison  with  1902-3,  (i.)  189, 
196:  first  winter  at  Cape  Evans,  (i.) 
224,  239:  record  lowest — Winter  Jour- 
ney, (i.)  249,  (ii.)  7,  11,  318:  Southern 
Journey — unexpected  cold,  (i.)  400: 
Southern  Party,  dog  teams  sent  to  meet, 
(ii.)  206,  207,  210,  217:  spring  journeys 
(i.)  284,  (ii.)  199:  winter  minimum  (One 
Ton  Camp),  (i.)  320: — rising  with  south 
wind,  (i.)  203:  Summit — unexpected 
high  temperature,  (i.)  369:  upper  air,  re- 
cords obtained  by  balloons,  (i.)  184,  263 

lent  Island,  (i.)  238,  263  and  ill. 

Tents — double  tent: — advantages,  (i.)  214, 
223,  254,  362,  364:  brushing  down,  (r.) 
3,  16:  ice  in,  286:  objection  to,  (ii.)  200: 
— improvements  suggested  by  experi- 
ence, (ii.)  154:  presented  by  schools — 
list,  (i.)  A  pp.  18,  431 

Terminus  Camp,  (ii.)  146 

Terra  Nova,  ill.,  (i.)  62:  arrangements  of 
the  ship,  (i.)  3-5,  7,  9,  12:  baling  out  in 
storm,  (i.)  9,  11,  App.  3,  421:  berth  for, 
(i.)  87,  92:  crew,  ill.  (i.)  2, — work  of,  (i) 
94,  96,  (ii.)  278: — last  boat  leaving  for,  ill. 
(ii.)  53:  leak  stopped  by  Mr.  Miller,  (i.) 
1-2:  officers  on  1912  voyage,  ill.  (ii.)  260: 
pack — ship's  behaviour  in,  (i.)  50,  ill. 
76:  rudder— strain  feared,  (i.)  31: — 
pumps,  difficulty  with,  ill.  (i.)  10,  (ii.) 
251:  purchase  and  alterations,  (ii.)  342- 


374 


SCOTT'S    LAST    EXPEDITION 


3:  scientific  work,  (ii.)  252,  274,  275, 
276:  arrangement,  (ii.)  252: — stores, 
(ii.)  343:  stranded,  (i.)  93:  tracks  of 
voyages,  1910-13,  (ii.)  277:  voyages  after 
landing  Shore  Party: — February  to 
April,  191 1,  (ii.)  246  et  seq.: — December, 
1911-April,  1912 — programme,  (ii.)  256; 
Cape  Adare,  Northern  Party  taken  on 
board,  (ii.)  76,  256:  Granite  Harbour, 
arrival  at,  (ii.)  183:  Northern  Party, 
attempts  to  relieve,  (ii.)  210,  260,  264; 
stores  landed,  (ii.)  204;  tracks,  (ii.)  275; 
visits  to  Cape  Evans,  (ii.)  270-272; 
Western  Geological  Party  picked  up, 
February,  1912,  (ii.)  197-8: — December, 
1912-February,  1913,  (ii.)  266  et  seq.: 
arrival  at  Cape  Evans — last  visit,  (ii.) 
123,270-272:  programme,  (ii.)  267;  re- 
turn to  Lyttelton,  (ii.)  276;  voyage  home 
(ii.)  276;  winter  cruise,  191 1,  (ii.)  353-6 

Terra  Nova  Bay — conditions,  March,  1912, 
(ii.)  264,  265 

Terror,  Mt.,  ill.  (i.)  56:  panorama  of  moun- 
tain and  glaciers,  (i.*)  127 

Thermometer  screens,  (i.)  184,  185,  ill. 
214,  221:    names,  (i.)  196 

Thermos  flasks,  value  for  biological  work, 
("•)  336 

Three  Degree  Dep6t,  (i.)  362,  378,  ill.  352 

Three  Kings  Island,  (ii.)  253 

Tide  Crack — absence  of,  (ii.)  14,  151: 
Razorback  Island,  ill.  6 

Tide-gauge,  construction  and  working  of, 
(i.)  203,  232 

Tides — McMurdo  Sound,  (ii.)  336:  Nel- 
son's lecture,  (ii.)  220:    record  of,  (ii.) 

336-7 
Tobacco,  solace  of,  (ii.)  187 
Transport  workers'  strikes  of  191 1  endan- 
gering work  of  Expedition,  (ii.)  256 
Trawling,  (i.)  96  and  ill.,  (ii.)  277,  329-30 
Tryggve  Gran,  Mt.,  (ii.)  181,  293 
Trypanosome — Atkinson's    discovery,    (i.) 

214 
Turk's  Head — geology,  (i.)  287 
Two-man  unit — disadvantages,  (ii.)  206 

U 

Upper  Glacier  Depot,  (i.)  352,  387 


Victoria  Land.    See  South  Victoria  Land 
Vinoe's  Cross,  (i.)  84,  144 


Volcanoes — Debenham's  lecture,  (i.)  219 
Volunteers  for  Expedition,  number  of,  (ii.) 
344 

W 

Wallace,  A.  R.,  reference  to,  (ii.)  334 
Wangamumu — Mr.  Cook's  hospitality,  (ii.) 

254,  255 

Warning  Glacier,  (ii.)  70,  ill.  72 

Water  driven  back  by  the  tide — eventful 
lunch  (ii.)  147 

Weather  conditions:  First  Winter — abnor- 
malities and  forebodings,  (i.)  158-9,  201- 
2,  258;  persistence  of  bad  weather,  (i.) 
240-1,  246: — Granite  Harbour,  under- 
cast  weather  at,  (ii.)  181:  Hut  Point,  (i.) 
143,  168,  297:  overlying  layers  of  air, 
reluctance  to  mix,  (i.)  190:  season  of 
1912,  rapid  closing,  (i.)  397,  407,  (ii.) 
210.  Second  Winter  (1912) — exceptional 
season,  (ii.)  219,  221,  225;  break-up  in 
July,  (ii.)  226: — warm  weather,  discom- 
fort of,  (i.)  147.  See  also  titles  Blizzards, 
Temperature,  and  Wind 

Werchojansk — coldest  spot  on  earth,  (ii.) 
318 

Western  Geological  Journeys — choice  of 
leader,  (i.)  13:  equipment,  (ii.)  126 — 
total  load,  127 

First  Expedition,'  ill.  (i.)  166,  (ii.)  124: 
boots,  condition  of,  (ii.)  138-9,  140: 
coaching  by  Wilson,  (i.)  90:  compass 
readings — error,  (ii.)  145:  cooks,  (ii.) 
128,  140,  147:  crevasses,  (ii.)  137,  138: 
Debenham's  photographs,  (i.)  185:  gold, 
prospecting  for,  (ii.)  134:  instructions, 
(ii.)  126:  killer  whales'  attack,  (ii.)  137: 
limits  of  survey,  (ii.)  124;  literature,  (ii.) 
136:  relaying,  (ii.)  157:  return  journey 
— blizzard,  &c,  (ii.)  146,  150:  return  to 
Hut  Point,  (i.)  141,  (ii.)  151:  surface — 
soft  snow,  &c,  (ii.)  137,  138,  et  seq.,  148 
Maps,  (ii.)  190,  198:  personnel  of Tarty 
(ii.)  124-5:  physiographic  features  of 
region  traversed — Taylor's  lecture,  (i.) 
229 

Second  (Granite  Harbour)  Expedi- 
tion, (ii.)  152  ill.  126:  blizzards,  (ii.)  150, 
153,  154,  155,  184,  189,  193;  blubber 
stove — difficulties  on  Cape  Roberts,  (ii.) 
189;  boots,  condition  of,  (ii.)  187;  cooks 
and  cooking,  (ii.)  167,  182,  ill.  166; 
crevasses,  (ii.)  191  et  seq.,  193,  194; 
equipment — total  load,  (ii.)  156;   food — 


INDEX 


375 


birthday  delicacies,  (ii.)  167,  176,  187; 
rations  reduced,  (ii.)  186,  189;  seals,  kill- 
ing and  flensing,  (ii.)  165,  167,  171; 
skuas' eggs,  (ii.)  173,  179;  sledging  menu, 
(ii.)  163:— "Granite  House,"  (ii.)  168: 
headgear,  (ii.)  157:  instructions,  (ii.) 
152:  literature,  (ii.)  187:  night  march- 
ing, (ii.)  160,  162:  recreations,  (ii.)  187: 
relaying — routine,  (ii.)  157,  160,  161: 
retreat — preparations  and  choice  of 
route,  (ii.)  190,  191 :  ship,  unable  to  reach, 
(ii.)  188,  259:  ship  met,  (ii.)  197 — taken 
on  board,  (ii.)  198,  260,  ill.  150,  196: 
surface  troubles,  (ii.)  157,  159,  165,  185: 
— summary  of  work,  (ii.)  198 

Western  Mountains,  ill.  (i.)  194,  (ii.)  124: 
panorama,  (i.)  131 

Western  Spring  Journey,  (i.)  43  and  note, 
281-288 

Whales — abundance  in  Polar  regions,  rea- 
sons for,  (ii.)  330:  blue  whale  or  rorqual 
(Balcenoptera  Sibbaldi),  (i.)  15,  16,  46, 
148,  App.  4,  422,  (ii.)  56,  250;  sounding 
wire  fouled  by,  (ii.)  249:  lesser  rorqual, 
(ii.)  250:  killer  {Ore a  Gladiator),  (i.) 
46,  60,  136,  146,  217,  ill.  82,  (ii.)  148;  ad- 
ventures with,  (i.)  67,  (ii.)  137:  notes  on, 
(i.)  66;  numbers  south  of  pack,  (ii.)  332; 
penguins  and  whales,  (i.)  58,  59: — species 
examined,  New  Zealand,  (ii.)  330: 
species  recognised  south  of  pack,  (ii.) 
332:  sperm,  (ii.)  265;  Wilson's  new  whale, 

(i.)  31,37,55 

Whales,  Bay  of — Campbell's  meeting  with 
Amundsen,  (ii.)  246 

Wild  Mountains,  (i.)  350  and  ill. 

Williams,  Mr.  W., — Engineer:  motor, 
adaptation  to  work  Lucas  sounding 
machine,  (ii.)  253:  pumps,  clearing,  (ii.) 
251:  storm  at  sea,  work  in,  (i.)  9,  10 

Williamson,  T.  S. — P.O.:  accident  with 
motor  sledge,  (i.)  73 :  Atkinson's  tribute 
to,  (ii.)  216:  mule,  management  of,  (ii.) 
229,  233:  Northern  Relief  Party,  mem- 
ber of,  (ii.)  213:  sewing  machine,  charge 
of — second  winter,  (ii.)  217 

Wilson,  Dr.  E.  A. —  Chief  of  Scientific  Staff 
and  Zoologist,  (i.)  15,  221,  224,  270,  290, 
ill.  298:  ablutions  in  the  hut,  (i.)  221 :  Bar- 
rier problems,  (ii.)  283:  blubber  stove, 
accident  with,  (ii.)  28:  cold,  endurance 
of,  (i.)  258: — frostbitten  at  last,  (i.)  195: 
— culinary  invention,  (i.)  151,  153,  App. 
16,  430:   dog  accident,  help  in,  (i.)  125, 


126:  dog  driving,  (i.)  97,  99-100:  foods, 
views  on,  (i.)  200-201 :  geological  work 
in  Beardmore  district,  (i.)  340,  388-9,  392 
— importance  of,  (ii.)  302: — grouse  dis- 
ease worm,  account  of,  (i.)  198:  lectures 
— Antarctic  flying  birds,  (i.)  177;  pen- 
guins, (i.)  190;  sketching,  (i.)  203 : — pony 
accidents,  (i.)  134,  299,  App.  14,  427, 
App.  20,  437:  portrait,  (ii.)  frontispiece: 
Providence,  feeling  as  to,  (ii.)  41 :  sketch- 
ing work,  (i.)  34,  51,  173,  174,  355,  ill. 
260,  510:  South  Polar  Times  illustra- 
tions, (i.)  280:  Southern  Journey,  (i.) 
340: — death,  (i.)  408:  selection  of  pailv, 
App.  9,  424:  snow  blindness,  (i.)  349, 
380,  392,  399:  strained  tendon,  (i.)  384, 
385,  3§7j  393 : — value  of — work,  charac- 
ter, and  influence,  (i.)  181,203,  297,  368, 
(ii.)  241 — Cherry-Garrard's  tribute,  (ii.) 
28,  35:  resourcefulness,  (i.)  69,  139;  self- 
sacrificing  devotion,  (i.)  404;  thought- 
fulness,  (ii.)  48: — Western  Party,  coach- 
ing, (i.)  90:  Winter  Journey,  ill.  2,  46 — 
Report,  (ii.)  2  et  seq. 

Wilson,  Mrs.,  (i.)  5 :  Scott's  farewell  letter 
to,  (i.)  410 

Wilson  Piedmont  Glacier,  ill.  (ii.)  158 

Wind: — barometer  not  indicating,  (i.)  48: 
bluffs,  influence  of,  (i.)  317:  boulders 
hollowed  by  sand  carrying  wind,  (ii.)  80: 
change  of  direction,  suddenness,  &c,  (i.) 
193 :  descent  on  either  side  of  a  moun- 
tain ridge,  (i.)  149:  direction — Barrier, 
(i.)  313:  Hut  Point  to  Cape  Evans,  (ii.) 
46;  Summit,  (i.)  373:- — force — Adare, 
Cape,  (ii.)  65;  Dry  Valley,  (ii.)  133,  172; 
Evans,  Cape — first  winter,  (i.)  186,  190, 
199,  205,  239,  240,  242,  246,  267-8;  com- 
parison with  Barrier  and  Hut  Point,  (i.) 
199; — Evans,  Cape — second  winter,  (ii.) 
219;  Evans  Coves — tents  split  by  wind, 
(ii.)  86;  frequency  of  high  winds,  com- 
parative tables,  &c,  320-27;  Hut  Point, 
(i.)  187;  Winter  Journey,  (ii.)  19,  21,  22, 
25>  29>  33,  et  seq.,  Bowers'  Record,  (ii.) 
App.  347: — ponies,  effect  on,  (i.)  308 

Wind  Vane  Hill,  (i.)  236,  237 

Winter  Journey  to  Cape  Crozier,  (i.)  249- 
54,  (ii.)  1-52:  blubber  stove — Wilson's 
accident,  (ii.)  28 — failure,  32:  candle- 
lamps,  sledging  by,  (ii.)  7,  8,  51:  cold, 
sufferings  from,  freezing  into  clothes,  &c, 
(ii.)  10,  43,  50,  52:  cooking,  (ii.)  45,  51: 
equipment  and  preparations,  (i.)  223 — 


376 


SCOTT'S   LAST   EXPEDITION 


start,  230:  Emperor  rookery,  visit  to, 
(i.)  251,  (ii.)  23  et  seq.:  experience  gained 
in  regard  to  sledging  rations  and  equip- 
ment, (i.)  223,  224,  253,  (ii.)  15:  feet, 
care  of,  (ii.)  43 :  frostbites,  (ii.)  6,  10; 
fuel  allowance,  (ii.)  21,  32:  hut,  building, 
&c,  (i.)  252,  (ii.)  18,  21, — precautions 
against  wind,  (ii.)  23,  29: — hut  roof  and 
tent  blown  away,  (i.)  252,  (ii.)  30,  33,  38 
— losses,  extent  of,  (ii.)  30,  37;  meal 
under  floor-cloth,  (ii.)  34,  37;  tent  recov- 
ered, (ii.)  34,  37: — Knoll,  arrival  at,  (ii.) 
19:  load  per  man,  (i.)  230:  low  tempera- 
tures, (i.)  256,  (ii.)  44: — record  minimum, 
(i.)  248,  (ii.)  7,  12,  318:— map,  (ii.)  51: 
material  results,  (i.)  253 :  Meteorological 
Log  kept  by  Bowers,  (ii.)  1,  8,  App.  347: 
nose-nips  used,  (ii.)  8:'  party  at  start  and 
on  return — weight  lost,  &c,  (i.)  249,  250, 
254,  (ii.)  51,  ill.  (ii.)  2,  46: — pressures  and 
crevasses,  (ii.)  3,  13,  14,  17,  39  et  seq.: 
Providence,  sense  of,  (ii.)  41,  relaying, 
(ii.)  7,  8,  12,  51:  return — reasons  for  de- 
cision, (ii.)  35:  routine,  (ii.)  51:  sleep, 
want  of,  (i.)  249,  (ii.)  37  et  seq.,  46:  sleep- 
ing-bags, ice  on,  &c,  (i.)  253,  (ii.)  9,  n, 
26,  37:  snow-blindness,  (ii.)  80:  steering 
in  the  dark  and  fog,  (ii.)  12:  surface — 
sandy  snow,  (ii.)  1 1 :  wind,  force  of,  (ii.) 
18,  19,  21,  23,  29,  31,  33,  35  et  seq.,  App. 
347:  wonderful  performance,  (i.)  249, 
250 — hardest  journey  ever  made — 
Scott's  considered  opinion,  (ii.)  48,  52 

Winter  quarters,  choice  of,  (i.)  12,  13,  56, 
61 

Winter  quarters  fixed  at  Cape  Evans,  ill. 
(i.)  94:  First  Winter — coal  consumption 
(i.)  23 1 :  exercise — difficulty  in  the  dark, 
(i.)  245:  football,  (i.)  177,  180,  185,  191, 
194:  ski-ing,  (i.)  199,  208,  213,  214,  215, 


222,  224,  233:  walks,  (i.)  173,  176,  189, 
265: — food,  (i.)  199:  hymns  and  hymn- 
books,  (i.)  171,  198,  214,  257;  lectures, 
see  that  title:  meteorological  work,  (i.) 
161:  night-watchman  instituted,  (i.)  171: 
occupations,  (i.)  181,  242,  ill.  184:  rou- 
tine, (i.)  194,  221,  222:  Sunday  routine, 
(i.)  208 

Second  Winter — fire  outbreaks,  (ii.) 
221,  229:  night  watch,  men  taking  turn 
(ii.)  218:  recreations,  (ii.)  220:  snowing 
up  of  hut,  (ii.)  229:  work,  exercise,  &c, 
routine  maintained,  (ii.)  217,  225 

Wooden  ship,  behaviour  in  heavy  sea,  (ii.) 
250 

Wright,  C.  S.— Physicist,  ill.  (ii.)  312  — 
barrier  problems,  (ii.)  283:  Cambridge 
friendship  with  Taylor,  (ii.)  125:  depot 
laying  at  Corner  Camp,  (i.)  141:  experi- 
ence in  Canadian  backwoods,  (ii.)  125: 
ice  problems,  work  on,  (i.)  20,  21,  151, 
181,  189,  195 — notes  on  ice  physics,  (ii.) 
303-10: — lectures — Constitution  of  Mat- 
ter, (i.)  280;  ice  problems,  (i.)  194;  ra- 
dium, (i.)  263 : — loyal  support  of  leader, 
(ii.)  215:  Northern  Relief  Party,  mem- 
ber of,  (ii.)  213:  pendulum  observations 
in  hut,  (i.)  217,  234,  (ii.)  222:  physics — 
summary  of  work  of  Expedition,  (ii.)  311: 
short  sight,  (ii.)  216:  sketching  talent,  (i.) 
34:  Southern  Journey,  (i.)  340:  South- 
ern Search  Party,  leader  of  mule  party, 
(ii.)  232:  value  of — work,  &c,  (i.)  88, 
180-1,  297 

Wyatt,  Mr.  G.  F. — Business  Manager  to 
Expedition,  (i.)  2,  91,  (ii.)  256,  267 


Young  Island,  Balleny  Group,  (ii.)  251 


